Kingdom Hearts: Xanrivash's Universe
by Revolutionary Venom
Summary: Special KH side stories
1. Post It Notes from Roxas

HI THAR

Well, after speaking with another KH fanfic writer by the name of Xanrivash, she agreed to let me write some one shots with the universe she has created. For most of these, I'll probably just be using Axel, Demyx, and Roxas since those are the three that she tends to focus on but I might occassionaly bring someone else into the spotlight or other characters of hers (though I'll tend to stay away from OC's since I might screw some of those up without meaning to.)

Anyway, each chapter will state at what point in her storyline these take place in, or if they just take place.

SETTING: Between "Stronger than Whiskey" and "Christmas in the Warzone"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich

* * *

Roxas was bored.

There was no other way to explain it. Axel and Demyx were both gone on missions…or more accurately, they were gone together on a mission. They had been sent for five days to Ala Rubra, some place that Roxas had been told that magic of just about any kind was possible. They were going for reconnaissance, meaning that if Demyx and Axel were going, there would be a lot of fun as well as investigation (as Axel had said a few times "just flexible thinking".)

_I bet they're having more fun than I am right now, _Roxas thought, flopping back down on his bed.

Originally, the mission had required Roxas, Demyx, and Axel to go to Ala Rubra. Roxas had especially been looking forward to it because he had been told that besides the magic factor, there was a lot of history behind the capital. The description of this place made Fantasia sound like a kiddie park.

However, the day before the trio were supposed to leave, the Keybearer had caught a nasty cold and had been forbidden by the Superior (not to mention Axel and Demyx,) from leaving The Castle That Never Was. So when the next day came, his big brothers had come to see him, said goodbye, promised to bring something fun back, etc.

So here he was, on the fifth day, bored as…well, let's just say that the kid could be watching paint dry and that would've been fun.

Roxas didn't even know _why _he had been forced to stay in his room so long. The cold had cleared itself up two days ago, thanks to some kind of a cure-all that Vexen had given him the first day. But both Xigbar and Xemnas had forbidden him of leaving the castle, just in case he had a relapse.

He looked at the alarm clock on the table next to him and sighed. _Time to feed Connie and Sol I guess,_ he thought. The teenager got up, opened a portal, and made his way into Axel's room. Immediately, both cats ran up to Roxas and rubbed themselves against his legs, meowing the whole time. "Guess you two are hungry huh?" Roxas asked, smiling a little as he bent down a little to pet them both.

"Mrow," Sol answered.

"Alright, let's see what we got here," Roxas answered back, reaching for the medium sized bag of cat food.

Since Eight and Nine knew that the teenager would most likely be seeing Connie and Sol while they were gone, the two had moved the food and bowls so that they were next to each other in Axel's room. So Roxas got a handful of dry food for each cat, putting the food in each bowl. The cats watched as he put their "precious cargo" in and as soon as they heard the food hit the metal bowls, they went straight for the food and dug in.

Roxas sighed, looking towards Axel's TV and Xbox. _Maybe some Halo would keep me from being-_

His train of thought was interrupted when he noticed two sticky notes attached to the TV. He got up from the floor, walking over to take up the posts. Upon reading them, he smiled. The first one was from Axel.

"Don't screw up your game while we're gone!"  
-Big Brother # 1

Roxas chuckled, then looked at the second post-it.

"Disregard above post from Big Brother # 1. He spends too much time with the idiot box as it is."  
-Big Brother # 2

_What are they now, Things 1 and 2 from Dr. Seuss?_ Roxas thought, as he read how each of the older Nobodies had signed their notes. He re-read the two notes, thinking about what Axel and Demyx were probably doing right now.

_Well, it IS the last day of their mission,_ Roxas thought. _So by that, they should be home soon-_

Suddenly, an idea popped into his head.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

A corridor of darkness opened up in the hallway just outside the doors to Eight and Nine's rooms. Two figures walked out of the dark portal, one adjusting his backpack on his shoulder while the other simply let his slide down his arm to hang from his hand.

"I hope Roxas likes the stuff we brought back for him," Demyx said, smiling a bit as he thought about the books he had found. "Kinda strange that there are wizards that specialize in light magic though, dont'cha think?"

"Not really, considering the other types of magic that existed there," Axel answered. "But I bet Roxas will like that book of light spells you found for him." He smirked then when he looked at the case in Demyx's other hand. "What I don't get is why you bought that sitar off that one girl when you've got one as a weapon that can also summon water clones and control the element."

"It's a neat sitar," Demyx said. "Beautiful color, pretty much brand new, and probably has magical properties. I can play it when I can't use my normal one."

Axel thought about that for a moment. "Good point," he said. "Since there have been a few times where our powers were taken from us, I guess that makes sense."

Demyx nodded, then yawned. "Man am I tired," he said. "But I'm hungry too. Wanna go to the kitchen and see if there are any leftovers from dinner?"

"Sure, why not? But let's dump our stuff first," Axel said. "And I'm sure Connie wants to lick your hair while I check my blood sugar."

Demyx just rolled his eyes as he opened his door. "C'mon, let's get moving."

Axel just chuckled, adjusting his backpack again as he opened the door to his own room. Immediately, he dumped his stuff on his bed and dug through his bag for his blood glucose monitor. After a few minutes, Axel found said object. "Aha! There you are," he said to no one in particular.

"Mrow?"

Axel looked from the monitor in his hand to the spot next to his bag. "Hey Sol," he greeted, petting the tabby's head. "Missed me?"

Said tabby cat licked Axel's palm, then went over to the head of his bed and began to paw at something. The Flurry of Dancing Flames noticed the item in question that Solace was so interested in; apparently, someone had put a post-it note on his headboard, just high enough to be out of the cat's reach.

_Please tell me that I'm not being sent out on another mission,_ Axel thought, sighing as he took the memo. _I just got back from a five day recon mission, why send me right after I get back unless it was an emergency?_

But as he read the memo, he was surprised.

"Come down to the kitchen if you're up for it."

-The One and Only, Little Brother

P.S. CHECK YOUR DAMN SUGAR!

Axel couldn't help but snicker at the note. _Wonder why he signed it the way he did. _Putting the note in his pocket, Eight proceeded to the shared bathroom with glucose monitor in hand.

As Axel was doing this, Demyx was also settling back into his own room. He placed the sitar case down on the floor, his backpack going on the bed. Connie hopped onto the case and meowed. "Hey Connie, miss me?" Demyx asked, scratching the cat's ears. The cat answered by licking his hand. The Melodious Nocturne smiled. He turned and began to unpack his bag when he noticed a post-it on his headboard. _I hope it's not another mission,_ he thought, taking up the note. _I don't think Axel can take another one right after this one, nor me considering how his sugar got so low at one point and my hearing aids almost shorted out._

On the third day of the mission, Axel's insulin pump had gone haywire (perhaps due to the magic that was just about everywhere) as well as Demyx's hearing aids. Because of this, Axel's blood sugar had fallen to somewhere in the fourties or fifties and Demyx almost hadn't heard him when his friend had made a huge *thud* when he fainted. They had managed to fix both problems, but it hadn't helped anything with their mission because Axel had been out of it for the remainder of the day and Demyx had had to mess around with the batteries of his hearing aids to make sure they were still working.

But Nine was a bit taken aback when he read the note, seeing that it was not a mission.

"If you're not tired, come down to the kitchen."

-The One and Only, Little Brother

P.S. Make sure Axel checks his sugar so I can give you guys a surprise ;)

Demyx scratched his head and wandered over to the bathroom door, note still in his hand. He looked over it again as he knocked on the door that joined his and Axel's room. "Hey Axel?"

"What's up?" a muffled voice asked.

"Did you get a sticky note about going down to the kitchen?"

The bathroom door opened and Axel appeared. "Actually yeah I did," he answered. "Seems Roxas wants us down there."

"Yeah," Demyx agreed. "So shall we go?"

Axel opened a portal in the bathroom, then gestured for Demyx to go first. "After you Beethoven."

The Nocturne just rolled his eyes and walked through the portal, Axel following after…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"CLOSED.

ONLY VIII, IX, and XIII ALLOWED."

"What do ya make of this?" Axel asked Demyx, as they both read the post-it on the kitchen door. Demyx shrugged. "No idea," he said. "I don't remember Saix or Xemnas ever authorizing the kitchen to be closed before either."

"Might as well go inside and find out before you die of hunger or I faint because of low blood sugar," Axel said. So he opened the door to the kitchen-

"WELCOME HOME!"

The Flurry and Nocturne almost fell over when they found themselves being glomped by Roxas. "Geez, happy to see us or what?" Axel asked, putting one arm around the younger one, Demyx doing the same. "I know we were gone for awhile, but I never thought you'd pull a group glomp on us."

"It's been boring around here," Roxas said, looking up at his big brothers. "I've been doing nothing around here since you guys left."

"Then you're really gonna love us for the stuff we brought back," Demyx said, smiling. "But first, what's this surprise, other than glomping us?"

"First, what's Axel's sugar?"

Axel rolled his eyes. "I knew this was coming," he said. "It's about sixty five. Why?"

"YOU NEED CAKE!"

Demyx and Axel just watched as Roxas let go of them both, ran around the island in the kitchen, and to the fridge with grand speed. Then he came back with a small, round cake that said "Welcome Home" on it.

"Looks good," Demyx said. "Did you make it?"

"You know I can't cook worth jack," Roxas said, going over to the table, the other two following him and taking a seat. "Xaldin made it, but I decorated it."

"Then let's not let it waste eh?" Axel said. "In history's famous words, 'let them eat cake!'"

* * *

For anyone wondering, this is a _slight_ crossover with Negima. The name "Ala Rubra" was the name of a famous group of the Magical World (I couldn't remember/find the name of the capital) and the girl mentioned in the story with the sitar was Asakura (there's a picture of her in the manga with a random sitar, but we never see it again. That's why Demyx has it =D) So if you're a Negima fan, you probably noticed these =3


	2. Demyx Wonders

Hey =3

Here's the second story! This one was kinda a strange inspiration, but after reading a few other stories, I realized that Demyx never asked about what he was like as a five year old (other than what's mentioned at the end of "A Little Problem"). The other part of this inspired story I guess was the fact that sometimes, people just want to hear what happened again, to actually make sure it happened or to hear what it was like from another's P.O.V.

Setting: A few weeks after "A Little Problem"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich

* * *

"Hey Axel?"

"Yeah Demyx?"

"What was I like when I was transformed into a five year old?"

Axel paused his game of Halo, turning to face Demyx, who was sitting on Axel's bed, the stuffed whale dubbed 'Benji' next to him. "Why do you wanna know?" Axel asked. "It's a really funky story."

"Because I don't remember any of it," Demyx simply answered. "I remember waking up in the rain and you fainting at the sight of me, because apparently I had died and faded in your arms seconds before due to a broken neck. I mean, I've seen the pictures Roxas took for fun, like this one picture of me and you sleeping, but they don't tell much other than my skin changed to what my Other's color was, I still had my powers, and Benji popped up outta nowhere like a Shadow Heartless."

Axel sighed. He really didn't want to go into a load of detail, but he tell what needed to be told. He owed Demyx that much after almost losing one of his brothers.

"Well, you remember coming back from that weird world right? The one that you said made you feel uneasy?"

The Melodious Nocturne nodded.

"Well, for four days after that you were a little kid," Axel started. "You were pretty much how you are now really. The only real major differences were that you could hear, had asthma attacks, and carried Benji just about everywhere you went." He paused for a second, then smiled. "You were the sweetest little kid I'd ever known. Whenever something happened, you tried to make people happy; once, Roxas and I got into a fight and you started crying 'cuz you thought we were fighting because of you-"

"-which isn't right, is it?" Demyx interrupted.

"Well…yes and no, technically speaking," Axel answered. "The fight started because I was trying to cheer you up by tickling you. Roxas said that I…that I could've given you another attack by tickling you until you couldn't breathe, which I hadn't thought of nor was I trying to do. It basically escaladed from there…and we only stopped when we both heard you crying. Roxas and I basically admitted we were both idiots."

"You guys are idiots about eighty percent of the time," Demyx said, giving a half-smile.

"Maybe so, but you didn't know that then," Axel said. "You thought we hated each other until Roxas came in the next morning with his camera and said that he thought I was an idiot sometimes, but other than that, he didn't hate me.

"Sometimes it got a little hard, I'll admit; you knew you were a Nobody, but you thought that you had always been five instead of nineteen. The first asthma attack you had scared the shit out of me too, since when I left to get breakfast, you were still under the covers. I thought you had gone back to sleep, but when I came back you were using a bubble of water in place of an inhaler to help stop the attack. 'Course, at that point, I hadn't realized that you had had asthma when you were your Other."

Demyx stared at him for a few moments. Then he finally said, "So I basically scared you with the fact that I was a five year old…but you stuck around and helped me anyway?"

Axel looked at him, a little surprised at this statement. "Of course I did. Why wouldn't I?"

The Melodious Nocturne didn't say anything for a moment. Then, he smiled. "Śukriyā Axel."

"…what the heck did you just say?"

"What do you think I said?"

"…thanks?"

Demyx nodded.

"…and I'm gonna guess that was in Hindi. Wasn't it?"

Nine nodded again, smiling the whole time.

"…you're definitely gonna have to teach me Hindi someday. And you're welcome."

* * *

It's been said several times that Demyx was half-Indian and that he speaks Hindi in front of Axel a few times throughout Xanrivash's stories. I wanted an actual phrase in Hindi to show up. "Sukriya " basically means "thank you" in Hindi (couldn't get the accents on the word 2nd time around, sorry).  
However, I got the translation from Google Translate. If you speak Hindi and this isn't the right phrase, please tell me and I'll fix it


	3. Curse or Something Helpful?

Another short! This time it's Zexion and Demyx.

Setting: Some time after "The Cavern"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts or Shakespeare's "As You Like It". If I did, I'd be insanely, INSANELY rich.

* * *

Zexion was sitting in his favorite chair, with one of his favorite pieces of Shakespeare, in what he considered "his" domain.

The Library That Never Was.

He turned another page of the piece of literature and continued to read.

"_And this our life, exempt from public haunt,  
Finds tongues in trees,  
books in the running brooks,  
Sermons in stones,  
and good in every thing.  
__I would not change it."_

"HI ZEXY!"

The Cloaked Schemer jumped a little, just now noticing the oceanic scent. _Nine…_

Demyx was sitting on an ottoman across from the chair that Zexion was occupying, smiling like he usually was. "What do you want Nine?"_ And how did I not notice you before you scared me out of my wits?_

The Melodious Nocturne shrugged. "Nothing really," he said. "Just kind of bored. Axel and Roxas are out on a mission and everyone else I'd want to bug isn't here or are busy. And I'm NOT going to be Vexen's or Marluxia's guinea pig."

"Kingdom Hearts knows you've spent enough time in the medical wing with Four," Zexion responded. "And I don't even want to know what would happen if you had an encounter with Eleven."

"Me either," Demyx said. He shuddered. "I can only imagine."

"Hmm."

Silence took over for awhile. Zexion went back to reading.

"_Happy is your grace,  
That can translate the stubbornness of fortune  
Into so quiet and so sweet a style."_

"Hey Zexion?"

Said Nobody looked up when Demyx actually called him by his name. He usually just called him 'Zexy' unless he was serious about something. "What is it?" Zexion asked.

"I was just wondering…"

Zexion waited for a few moments. When the Nocturne didn't continue, he asked. "What were you wondering about?"

"…how long have you been able to smell stuff?"

The Schemer looked baffled for a moment, taking a moment to realize just what Demyx had asked. "You mean how long have I had the sense of smell to the level I have?" he half-asked, half replied.

Demyx nodded. "It's just…ever since I've known you, you've been able to smell just about anyone or anything. I can't even begin to count all the times you've saved me because of your heightened sense of smell. So I guess…I just wanted to know."

Zexion noted the curiosity mixing with guilt on Demyx's face. Why guilt? Was it because he felt strange about asking a personal question? Zexion didn't know.

So he thought about the original question instead.

"Well…I don't remember Ienzo having the heightened sense of smell," Zexion started slowly. "But…that was also a long time ago. At this moment, I could not even remember what it was that caused my own heart to be stolen from me and transformed into a Nobody. Perhaps I've had this heightened sense _because _I became a Nobody, like how you have gills since your element became water after joining the Organization." Zexion paused, then added, "Sometimes it feels more like a curse than a gift though."

"Why's that?" Demyx asked.

The Cloaked Schemer needed a good example of the curse side. It took him a moment, but he finally came up with one. "Do you remember when Larxene and Axel would come into breakfast some mornings when they were…together…and the looks they used to give one another?"

"Yeah. So?"

"To the normal human, or in our case the normal Nobody, cannot smell when…relations…have been established," Zexion started. "But in my case, every time Axel and Larxene walked in together, a certain musk - if you will - emitted off the two of them and was overpowering. Now that Larxene and Marluxia are sleeping together, it's even stronger for some reason or another."

Demyx's eyes were the size of dinner plates. "So what you're saying is that you can smell people when they've had sex?" he asked.

"Putting it roughly, yes," Zexion responded, a little disgusted at the phrasing.

"But have the times it's helped outweighed the times it hasn't?"

After a moment of silence, Zexion answered. "I believe it has. Doesn't mean that it still feels like a curse sometimes."

"Okay…just wanted to know."

And with that, The Melodious Nocturne left the library.

_Where did that suddenly come from?_ Zexion wondered. Not interested so much in reading anymore, he began to think about what had just happened._ He mentioned something about saving him because I was able to track him down…now that I think about it, there have been quite a few times when that's happened. Such as when that sinkhole incident occurred. _

…_perhaps it's not as much as a curse as I thought…_


	4. The Dragon Returns: Part 1

This is going to be one of the few two-parters of the stories that I write in this universe. I guess because this is one of the longer ones, and I didn't want it all in one chapter...or something like that. The only other note is that I actually did a direct copy/paste from Xanrivash's story (with one or two words thrown in there, as well as a couple of phrases). Only reason I did was because I needed something that Axel could remember well enough, and throughout the "Stronger than Whiskey" story, he keeps having flashbacks through a third party. I didn't think I could communicate the flashback in the same way, so...yeah.

Setting: Six months after "Stronger than Whiskey"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich

* * *

_Axel was watching as what looked like a really bad memory. _

_He recognized his room and watched the scene taking place before him._

_"Axel, what are you doing?" Demyx tried to get away, tried to run like the coward he was, but a quick fist to the face made him hold still for a few moments. _

_Axel suddenly realized what this place was and when it was. The red head tried to scream at Demyx to get out of the room, but this was a memory dream. There wasn't anything he could do. _

_By the time the dream version of Axel had his robe unzipped, Demyx was struggling again. Actually getting it off turned into a wrestling match - by the end, Demyx was flat on the floor, minus his robe and the T-shirt that had been under it, and the dream Axel was straddling him. The sheer terror in those sea-blue eyes was like fuel to flame. _

_"Axel! Please! Stop!"_

* * *

Axel bolted upright, drenched in sweat and trying to catch his breath. _Dammit, not this again, _he thought, trying to control the shaking his body was doing and ignoring the steam rising from the sweat on his body.

It had been six months since Axel had overcome his addiction to alcohol but the nightmares were coming back. He wasn't sure why but the memories from one particular night were coming back and hitting him _hard_.

Suddenly, he heard a knock coming from the door that joined the bathroom that he and Demyx shared. "Axel? You alright?"

Axel just curled up a little, bringing his knees to his chest and his arms hugging his knees closer. A few moments of silence passed before Demyx opened the door. "Axel? You okay?" he asked as he entered. Upon seeing his friend in his troubled state, Demyx rushed to Axel's bedside. "What happened?"

The older one didn't answer. Demyx sat on the bed, facing Axel. "Ax, you were screaming in your sleep. What's wrong?" He watched as his friend's face remained emotionless, eyes blank. But after a few moments, steam started rising from the corners of the fire-user's eyes. Demyx's face saddened. "Axel?"

"…the dreams are coming back," Axel finally confessed, tears continuing to come out and evaporate.

Demyx tensed a little. "About…?"

"Yeah, that night," Axel finished, tears still evaporating. "I…I thought this part of recovery was over. I never wanted to have anymore nightmares after…"

"It's okay Ax," Demyx said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe this is just another step, y'know?"

"I don't want this to be another step, I want these dreams gone, got it memorized?" Axel responded. His left hand unconsciously went to the old scar on his throat from when he had tried to kill himself by slitting his own throat with one of his chakrams. "I guess Lung Jiu Gui is just haunting me now."

Demyx just sighed. "It'll be okay," he said, removing his hand from Axel's shoulder. "Though the monsters die, they still come back and haunt us from time to time. Kingdom Hearts, I should know that better than anyone."

The red head smiled a little. "…I guess you do," he finally said, wiping his eyes.

Out of nowhere, a tabby cat jumped up onto the bed. "Hey Sol," Axel greeted, petting the cat between his ears. "Did I wake you up?"

Sol just rubbed his head against Axel's hand, as if he were trying to comfort his owner. Demyx smiled. "Why don't you go back to sleep Ax?" he suggested. "I'll even bring you breakfast in the morning so you can sleep in a bit."

"I thought I couldn't sleep in anymore since I was diabetic," Axel said, continuing to pet Sol.

Demyx shrugged. "Let's make an exception this time," he said. "It's almost four in the morning and I'm gonna guess that you won't be able to go back to sleep for awhile. Roxas and I will just bring a plate when it's time for breakfast."

Axel smiled. "Thanks Dem," he said.

"No problem," Demyx said, rising from the bed, heading back towards his own room. "Sleep tight."

The door that connected the two rooms shut and Axel was left alone with Solace.

Axel sighed, laying back down on the bed as Sol settled himself into a comfy spot next to the red head's pillow. Pulling the covers back up, Axel tried to go back to sleep as he listened to Sol's purring…

* * *

"Hey Demyx, where's Axel?"

The Nocturne picked up his own plate and the one he was taking to Axel, then turned to face Roxas. "He wasn't having a good night, so I promised to bring him breakfast," Demyx answered. "I'm actually going now if you want to come too."

"Sure, I'll come," Roxas said. "I've been worried about him for the last few days. He's been crankier than usual."

"He hasn't been getting much sleep," Demyx started, but stopped when he saw other members - such as Marluxia and Larxene - come into the kitchen and sit at the table. "C'mon, let's go."

Marluxia glared at the two as the headed towards the exit. "What, too good to eat with the rest of us now?" Marluxia asked. "Or is the drunkard that important?"

"He's not a drunkard _Marly_," Roxas sneered. "If you hadn't noticed, Axel doesn't do that anymore."

"You put too much faith in him," Marluxia responded, ignoring Larxene's giggle over the nickname 'Marly'. Demyx just turned to leave, Roxas glaring at the pink-haired flower user before following…

* * *

_Axel found himself in the middle of a fog so thick, he could barely see five feet in front of him. But he heard a voice in which he thought he'd __**never **__hear again._

"_Miss me boy?" _

_Axel's eyes widened when he heard that. He suddenly realized that he had summoned his chakrams and was ready to defend himself against a monster that was supposed to be gone. "You're supposed to be dead!" Axel screamed as the whiskey-colored dragon appeared before him. He flung one of his weapons towards the dragon, aiming for one of his wine-colored eyes. The chakram however, stopped in mid-air just before it could hit the eye. _

"_Whatever gave you that idea?" Lung Jiu Gui asked, the weapon falling to the floor, making a very loud metallic racket. "Without your so-called 'guardians', you wouldn't be here right now."_

"_Just leave me the Hell alone!" Axel screamed. "I got over my addiction. YOU SHOULD BE DEAD!"_

_Suddenly, a tiger, a golden lion, and a blue dragon appeared around Axel. _

"Axel."

_Axel looked around him, noticing Lung Qin Xiang was coming around the front, putting himself between the fire user and the other dragon. _

"Axel…"

"_You're not welcome here," Lung Qin Xiang said to the other dragon. Lung Jiu Giu just laughed, a cloud that smelled of whiskey and vomit emitting from his mouth. Despite being behind the form of Lung Qin Xiang, Axel could still smell the awful combination of which he was all too familiar with._

"AXEL!"

* * *

The red head was jerked from his nightmare, finding himself lying on his side in bed. Steam was rising from his body, meaning that he had once again been drenched with sweat. _Oh God, _Axel thought, bringing a hand to cover his eyes.

"Ax? Are you alright?"

Axel moved his hand to see that Roxas was kneeling next to the bed, Demyx sitting on the bed next to the red head, and Sol sitting in his spot next to Axel's pillow.

The tabby rubbed his head against the fire user's forehead, trying to comfort him. Axel smiled a little and petted Sol. "Not really," he answered. "The nightmares are getting worse." He rolled over onto his back and sat up. "I don't even know _why _they're coming. It's been six months. Why now?"

He didn't get a verbal answer. Instead, Roxas got on the bed between Demyx and Sol and hugged Axel. "Roxas…?"

"You don't have to be scared," Roxas said quietly. "We didn't leave you then, we're not leaving now."

"Got that memorized?" Demyx asked, smiling a little.

Axel let this sink in, then smiled, bringing his arms around his little brother. "I've got it memorized," he answered. But he still felt sad…and a little strange.

Roxas pulled away smiling, but concern filled his eyes and the smile melted into a frown when he looked at Axel. "Ax? You okay?"

"I just need something to eat," Axel answered.

"I should say so," Demyx said, shoving a plate that held scrambled eggs, a piece of toast, some bacon and…a piece of chocolate?

"Uh, why the chocolate?"

"We took your sugar while you were still asleep," Demyx answered, holding up Axel's glucose monitor. "It was a whopping fifty-five, so I pulled that out of one of your drawers where you keep candy for emergencies. Eat that first."

Axel obeyed, picking up the small piece of candy and partaking of it before digging into the rest of his breakfast, Demyx and Roxas picking up their plates from a nearby table and eating with him.

* * *

"Why so down in the dumps dude?"

Axel looked up to see Xigbar in one of his usual spots - the ceiling. The Flurry of Dancing Flames sighed. "Nuthin' Xiggy," he answered, taking a drink from the can of Coke in his hand. "Just kinda out of it I guess."

Axel had gone down to the rec room of the castle, thinking that no one would be looking for him since both Roxas and Demyx had said earlier that most of the Organization members were on missions. The only ones who weren't given missions that morning were Vexen (but when was he ever on one?), Xemnas (of course), and Xigbar. The only reason Axel didn't have one was because he hadn't shown up at breakfast. So really, he wasn't even sure if he was supposed to be on one or if he had managed to get lucky.

And since it was well after lunch, Axel could only guess why Xigbar was down here.

The Freeshooter inspected the younger member, then came down from his spot on the ceiling. "Alright, what's wrong?" he asked, a serious look on his face. "You didn't show up for breakfast this morning and you're drinking Coke. Something up with your sugar levels dude?"

"I don't think so," Axel said, rubbing one eye. "Other than it was a little lower than normal this morning, I don't think anything's wrong with it."

Xigbar sighed, pulling an white envelope with Axel's name on it. "If you think you're up for it today, then this is yours." He handed the red head the envelope. "Nothin' too hard, but if you don't think you're up for it-"

"I'm _fine_," Axel said, standing up. "I can take a mission, got it memorized? Now hand it over." He held his hand out, waiting for the older member to give up the envelope.

Xigbar snorted, handing the envelope over. "As if. Alright kid, but if you come back in bad shape, even if this _is _an easy mission-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Axel said mindlessly, opening the package and looking over his mission details. After skimming over the details, he looked at his superior. "I'm fine Xiggy. Don't sweat it."

The Freeshooter just stood there for a minute, trying to read Axel's expression. Finally, he gave up, opened a portal, and left the room.

Axel went back to skimming over the details. _Recon in the world of Valhalla? Well, if it's anything like the one I'm aware of, it's a Scandinavian world of the dead for people who died in battle and valkyries who lead them places. _

…_Wait, I'm going to a dead land for Heartless? Then again, I guess it's not that weird, considering we do go to the Underworld in the Ancient Greece where nymphs, gods, and half-animal creatures reside._

With that, Axel sighed, folding up the paper and putting it in his cloak as he threw away the envelope it had been in. _Guess there's no time like the present. Especially since this paper says it's only supposed to be an overnight mission._

Making sure his insulin pump had the right amount in it, he decided against taking the glucose monitor for a basic overnight recon and opened a portal that would take him to the world he was supposed to go to…

_**

* * *

**_Don't give in…please…just don't…

_The Heartless were coming in droves._

_Axel had only been in Valhalla for a few hours when the Shadow Heartless first appeared. Their numbers weren't very big, or at least they weren't anything that Axel couldn't handle. _

_At first anyway._

_But why were they even in the Scandinavian holy place for dead warriors?_

_It was something that had been bugging him, especially when the sixth or seventh wave of Heartless started attacking. It seemed that when he took one down, three more would pop up in its place. Why weren't the Einherjar helping? Weren't they supposed to be heroes who had died in battle and come to this land in the first place? Or what about Odin? If he was supposed to be the ruler of Valhalla, where was he?_

_Axel paused, catching one of his chakrams as it came back to him after hitting a few of the creatures. Maybe the Heartless were so numerous because they had taken over and turned Odin into a Heartless himself. Hell, hadn't the fake Ansem tried that himself with King Triton from Atlantica?_

_Suddenly, he felt…something…slash across his stomach. _

_Axel looked down, watching as something red began to blossom through the area where he had felt pain a moment ago. A flower? No, it just looked like one. Blood then?_

_In those moments of pain, Heartless began to jump on Axel, using claws that weren't normally seen to attack him. He fell to his knees, feeling like the life was flowing out of him between whatever the Heartless were doing to him and the gash across his stomach._

...

_He didn't know how long they had been clawing at his body. There was too much pain to account for. _

_He just knew that he couldn't take it anymore._

_With what energy he could gather, Axel took a firm grip of his chakrams and summoned as much fire as he could without committing a suicide attack. This made all the Heartless that had been ripping into his flesh either explode on impact or left them on the ground around him on fire as they began to fade. _

_A circle around him soon left enough space for him to to summon a portal, get out of Valhalla, and manage to get into the castle._

_Axel found himself on shaky feet in the kitchen of The Castle That Never Was, chakrams still in his hands. But as the pain in his stomach and many other places he hadn't known were injured increased, he dropped the one in his right hand and fell to his knees. _

"_Axel?"_

_He looked up to see half the Organization around the room. Xigbar ran over and kneeled next to him, holding him upright so he wouldn't fall face-first on the floor, Xaldin took one look and took a portal out of the kitchen, Demyx had one hand over his mouth, face paling, Roxas looked like he was about to faint, Zexion held a hand over his sensitive nose, and Xanrivash merely looked stunned._

"_Someone get Fori! NOW!" _

_That was the last thing that Axel remembered hearing before the world went dark._

Axel…please don't go…please…

* * *

"…_so, couldn't even handle a simple mission while sober? How pathetic."_

_Axel looked around him. So, Lung Jiu Gui was back. "What do you care? You only like to torment me now that I _don't _drink. And it wasn't 'simple', in case you hadn't noticed." _

_He was met by rather evil laughter from the dragon, the being's breath smelling heavily of whiskey and vomit. Axel held a hand over his nose and mouth to try and keep the smell out. "God, no wonder Demyx never wanted to go drinking," Axel said to himself. "Bet he never wanted to smell like that."_

_Lung Jiu Gui smiled evilly. "Oh? That's the only reason?" he asked the red head. "And it never occurred to you that it had nothing to do with the fact that he might not have wanted to become like you?"_

_Axel grimaced at the reminder. When he had been drunk, he'd been a monster. Demyx had once told him during the first few days of withdrawal/recovery that both he and Axel had had monsters that needed to be gotten rid of, just in different ways. If he wanted to get rid of his monster, the drinking had to stop._

_Which it did. _

"_Why are you here?" Axel asked, summoning his weapons, if it only was in his mind. _

"_Whatever made you think I'd left?"_

* * *

So that's the first part. What will happen to poor Axel, now that Lung Jiu Gui is back?

And if anyone's wondering, for some reason or another, my usual paragraph seperator wasn't working =/


	5. The Dragons Fight: Part 2

Well, I lied. I originally said this would be a two-parter. Turns out there will be a short 3rd piece

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich.

* * *

"How is he?"

Roxas looked up to see Demyx standing next to him. The Keyblade master just sighed, frowning. "Vexen says that it looks worse than it actually is, but he still got injured pretty badly." The teenager looked back down at the unconscious form on the bed next to him, feeling like he was about to cry.

When Xigbar had yelled for someone to get Fori, Demyx had run out to go find him, Zexion had taken a portal out to get Vexen (but it had turned out that Xaldin had told him first when he had left), Xanrivash had grabbed several kitchen towels to help staunch the blood flow from Axel's wounds, and Roxas…

Roxas had just stood there in shock.

He felt horrible about it now, looking back. The Keyblade master had seen many things over the time period he had been there. He had been there for the Katrina incident, the trials for Demyx and Axel when they had been told they were going deaf or now diabetic respectively, he'd seen the aftermath of the car wreck that the three of them had been in (Demyx had been in the worst shape of the trio), as well as the trip into the world of Nexus, where they had managed to find Fori.

But in just about every time Roxas could recall, he'd seen the aftermath of the battle or accident hours after it had happened, not right after, if that made any sense. The only time that hadn't applied was when he, Demyx, Axel, and Zexion had gone to Nexus and had encountered rather strange demons that had killed Axel, though Roxas hadn't known that at the time. He had just thought Axel had been knocked out until the next time he had woken up and Zexion confirmed his death.

Until they found out that Nexus was actually a place where the dead could come back anyway.

But when Axel had come into the kitchen through the portal, bleeding from so many places that Roxas couldn't even count, fear had struck him in a way that it hadn't before.

So all he could do now was sit by Axel's bedside, feeling horrible about just freezing up.

Axel's chest was covered in bandages, the heaviest area of them being around a wound close to his waistline that looked like it had been done with a pair of very sharp claws, or some sharp knives. Various places on both arms were also covered with bandages, hiding numerous stitches that were holding together deep gashes. Bruises marred his unusually pale face, stitches also making their way in numerous places with the bruises, and a patch of gauze was taped down to one side of his forehead. A clear oxygen mask covered most of his face. If there were any injuries below the belt, Roxas couldn't see them because a sheet came up to the wound on his waist and hid everything beneath it.

Roxas took a hold of Axel's hand, being careful of the IV needles that had been put in and taped down. He noticed how much warmer the fire user's hand was than usual and his eyes widened.

"It's okay Roxas. Vexen said it's just a small fever."

The teenager jumped, having forgotten that Demyx was standing right next to him. "Sorry Demyx," he apologized. "I just…"

"It's alright," the Nocturne said as he pulled up a spare chair next to Roxas and sat. "You froze up. It happens every once in awhile, whether we're out on missions in other worlds or here in the castle training. It's happened to me enough times that I know that personally." He sighed. "I dunno what Axel was up against, but I hope Xigbar finds out soon."

Demyx and Roxas sat together in silence for awhile, not wanting to break the silence. Then Roxas finally spoke. "Why did this happen?" he started. "Why's he sick? Why…why has he been having n-nightmares about that m-monster?" His voice started to break as he was doing his best not to cry.

The Melodious Nocturne put an arm around Roxas' shoulders, pulling him in for a hug. Thirteen just let Nine do so, feeling hollow as the older Nobody did his best to comfort the younger one. "To answer your questions, sometimes things like this just happen," Demyx said. "Vexen said none of his wounds are infected, but I think he got sick due to the fact he hasn't been sleeping well for awhile and his insulin pump was broken during his mission, wherever he was. He might've been fighting for hours with a broken piece of equipment and that wouldn't have helped him any. As for the nightmares…I honestly don't know."

Roxas couldn't hold back the tears anymore. He began to cry quietly into Demyx's shoulder, one hand still holding Axel's limp hand.

Demyx sighed, resting his head on top of Roxas'. _What happened out there Axel?_ he thought._ Were you sick before you went out there and we didn't notice? Does Lung Jiu Gui have something to do with this?_

"Mrow?"

Both Demyx and Roxas looked down to see Solace on the floor, looking up at them curiously. "How'd you get in here?" Demyx asked, removing his arm from around the teen next to him and picking up the cat. "And why haven't we still figured that out? You kept breaking in here when Axel was here six months ago."

Sol just rubbed his head against Demyx's hand, then jumped onto the bed. From there, Sol climbed onto Axel's chest, laying over where his heart should've been, curled up into a ball and fell asleep.

Roxas took his free hand (the other was still holding Axel's) and wiped his eyes. "I guess Sol has a knack for sticking around Axel," he said. Demyx smiled a little and watched as both the tabby and best friend slept. His smile quickly melted though when he noticed the sick look on Axel's face.

The red head's eyebrows were knitted together, a sheen of sweat had appeared upon his brow and was starting to evaporate, and it wasn't helping that it looked like Axel was having problems breathing; his mouth was moving a little to help with the breathing process underneath the mask…but it looked like he was forming words at the same time…

Demyx stood up and looked down at Axel, trying to see if he could read the other's lips better. "Demyx?" Roxas asked, confused why the Nocturne had just gotten up.

The water user didn't answer for a few moments. Then, he finally broke his silence, feeling sadder than he had before.

"Axel's asking Lung Jiu Gui to leave him alone…and…I think he's asking someone else to make him go away."

"Who?"

Demyx shook his head. "I don't know," he said. "Maybe it's like it was back then, remember? When he'd grab you and start asking for protection. Or when he looked at me, thinking I was Lung Qin Xiang and asked for me to kill him."

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"_Please, just leave me the Hell alone!" Axel screamed, throwing both chakrams at the whiskey colored dragon in front of him. The weapons, however, disappeared in a flurry of flames before they even got halfway to their intended target._

"_Why would I want to leave you in peace?" Lung Jiu Gui asked. "After all the damage you've caused to those who are desperate for friends around you, why would I leave?" _

"_Because you don't exist anymore!"_

_The dragon snorted. "I will only cease to exist when you're put out of your misery," he said, a hint of glee in his voice. _

_Axel fell to his knees, stunned by this statement. He'd have to die in order to get rid of this monster for good? _

_Well, that didn't seem too bad. The times he'd hurt someone while drunk over anything else were seriously outweighing the good he'd ever done-_

_Suddenly, the tiger, the lion with the golden mane, and Lung Qin Xiang were back. _

_The tiger came to Axel's left, rubbing his head against the fire user's shoulder. The lion came to stand in front of him, looking at Axel with bright blue eyes that seemed to bore into him. Lung Qin Xiang was in front of the cats, once again putting himself between Axel, the cat guardians, and Lung Jiu Gui._

_The red head was on the verge of tears. These guardians had saved him from the whiskey colored dragon once before. Could they again? _

_He wasn't sure, but he hoped they could._

_With that thought in mind, he wrapped his arms around the lion's neck, burying his face into the golden mane. "Please, make him go away," Axel begged. "I…I've tried to fight…I don't know how much more I can take…"_

_Lung Qin Xiang growled at Lung Jiu Gui. The whiskey colored dragon laughed. "So you're back," he said. "What makes you think you can win this time?"_

_Axel could hear Lung Qin Xiang roar…in anger?…at the other dragon. He kept his face buried in the mane of the golden lion, eyes tightly shut, tears forming at the corners of his eyes out of pure fear. He heard the battle that went on between the two great beings, but refused to look. Qin Xiang was smaller than Jiu Gui, so why did Lung Qin Xiang think he could win?_

_Then again, he had won the last time… _

_The tiger rubbed his head against the left side of Axel's head. Without lifting his head from the lion's mane, Axel put an arm around the tiger. _

…_Please, if there are any gods that watch over Nobodies, please don't let Lung Qin Xiang die…_

_Suddenly, a roar of pain echoed throughout the void. _

_Then, nothing._

_Axel opened his eyes. After what seemed like an eternity, he brought his face away from the golden mane, and looked up._

_Lung Qin Xiang turned to face the cat guardians and Axel. The red head noticed that blood was smeared across his teeth as he opened his mouth to address Axel._

"_He will not be back," the dragon said. "I've made sure of that this time."_

_Axel just stared at the grand dragon before him. Finally, he smiled._

"_Thank you."_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Something cold and fuzzy was poking at his face.

_What's something that's cold and fuzzy that would be trying to wake me up? _Axel opened his eyes a little and got his answer.

Solace was nuzzling his face against Axel's. "Mew."

The fire-user smiled. "Hey Sol," he managed to croak out, bringing his hand up to pet the tabby. The kitten rubbed his head in Axel's hand as the Nobody petted him. "How is it that you always seem to be the one waking me up as of late?"

"…Axel?"

Eight looked over to the door to see Nine and Thirteen standing there. "Hey guys. Wait, what's with those looks? Did someone fade or somethin'?"

Roxas' face went from sad and forlorn to overjoyed as Demyx simply smiled. The water-user came over to Axel's side, closely followed by the younger Nobody.

"What's going on?" Axel asked.

Demyx shook his head. "Welcome back," he simply said, Roxas hugging the older Nobody in bed. "And we'll explain…"

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"I've been out for HOW LONG?"

Roxas laughed a little as Demyx continued. "It's been three days since you collapsed in the kitchen," he said. "You've been here in the hospital wing ever since. And Xigbar finally found out why the place you went to was overrun with Heartless."

"Well…why was it?" asked Axel.

"Turns out that one of the Einherjar that had gone to Valhalla had been turned into a Dusk just before he got there nearly two weeks ago," Demyx told the fire user. "From there, he was somehow turning other dead warriors into Shadow Heartless. About the time you got there, there were so many that apparently Odin himself couldn't do anything…at least, not by himself."

"That's what Xigbar said anyway," Roxas said.

Axel let this information sink in. He brought a hand to his face, trying to rub away the sleep particles that were still stuck in his eyes when he noticed that there was something plastic that went into his nose. "What's this?" he asked.

The other two Nobodies went from looking happy to uncomfortable. "Vexen called it a nasal cannula," Roxas said. "You…were kinda having trouble breathing when you were first brought in. And it didn't help any that you had a really high fever for the last few days…"

A few moments of silence passed. Then, Demyx picked up where Roxas had left off. "When your fever broke yesterday, you started breathing normally. So Vexen took the oxygen mask off and put that on instead."

Silence passed over the three of them. Suddenly, Solace started batting at the plastic nasal equipment. "Hey cat, no touching the breathing stuff," Demyx said, picking Sol up.

Axel just smiled and laughed a little, but quickly found that trying to laugh hurt. He put a hand over the wound on his waistline. "Axel? You okay?" Roxas asked.

"Yeah, I'm alright," Axel answered. "I just hurt a little I guess."

"I'll go get Vexen," Roxas said, standing up. "Actually, we probably should've done that earlier, but…well, y'know-"

"Go get the Iceman if you feel he should be here," Axel joked. "I ain't going anywhere."

Roxas smiled, turning around, and running out the door.

The fire-user sighed, then turned to Demyx. "He's gone for good now."

"Who, Roxas?"

"No, you twat. Lung Jiu Gui."

Demyx's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. I guess that's why I was out so long, because I saw him again. It was like…" Axel paused for a moment. "I can't even begin to describe it. I tried to fight him off, but…I felt exhausted. Y'know, like one of those dreams where you've been running or something the whole time and you wake up feeling like you haven't slept at all."

_That would explain why he trying to talk in his sleep, _Demyx thought, remembering when he had read Axel's lips. "Did you figure out why you were having nightmares?"

The fire-user thought for a moment. "I think I have," he finally answered. "Right after I got out of here the first time, when you and I started talking in my room and Roxas joined us, I thought that we were okay. When I scared you awake the next day or whatever, it scared the Hell out of me when you lashed out because it made me think what I had done to deserve it. Then a thought occurred to me. 'How often did I stumble in around midnight or later and beat the shit out of him because he was handy? And what did Demyx do to deserve that?'" Axel sighed, but then smiled a little. "But…when you and Roxas came to see me later and we all started throwing socks, hitting each other with pillows, and tickling Roxas, I had another thought. Why did I ever need booze to begin with? I could have fun without it. I never did need it to begin with."

"Then why did Lung Jiu Gui come back?" asked Demyx.

Axel frowned. "…I think it was because I started to have some doubts over the last few months," he admitted. "Like…would I stay sober? I know I have for the last six months, but…I remember I tried to quit once after…that night, but later ended up hitting Roxas."

"That's why you tried to kill yourself back then, isn't it?"

"…yeah…I thought Roxas had given up on me. I was mad at myself or whatever was convincing me that I needed booze." Then, in a smaller voice, Axel added, "…and the fact that I nearly killed you…"

Demyx felt horrible. After he had quit drinking, the water-user had never thought to ask what was going through Axel's head. Lung Qing Xiang had once told him that Axel had tried his hand at suicide because he had felt guilty; Demyx had never thought that there were other reasons why.

"I think there's something you should know Axel," Demyx finally said. When he had Eight's full attention on him, Nine continued. "When I found out that you had tried to kill yourself, I was a bit on the…hysterical side. Roxas wasn't in much better shape when he came to see me and I told him. All I could do was hug him and hope that you survived. I felt cheated-"

"Cheated?" Axel asked. "Why that?"

"Because I wanted another chance to talk to you and tell you how much I understood the situation," Demyx said. "But then you went and did the same thing I did when Lung Qin Xiang took over me and I wanted out. Then I thought, 'I survived. He's stronger than I am. He has to survive.'…but even though Roxas and I both shared that same thought, we were terrified that we'd never get to see you again."

The two sat in silence for another few moments.

"Hey Demyx?"

"Yeah?"

"Lung Jiu Gui is finally gone." Axel smiled. "And it's thanks to Lung Qin Xiang. He killed him."

Demyx would've asked what that meant if Vexen had not chosen that moment to enter the room, Roxas following closely behind him.

* * *

Epilogue to follow =3

And I have no idea why, but my separator started working again o_O


	6. Axel's Guardians: Epilogue

The epilogue to the story!

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich

* * *

"Hey Demyx, have you seen Axel lately?"

Demyx stopped playing his sitar, looking up at his bedroom door to see Roxas. "Not recently," he said. "Though I think he said something about going to Twilight Town."

It had been almost two weeks since Axel had been released from the medical wing. His wounds were healing up nicely and Vexen was even allowing him to walk around a bit. But he still wasn't allowed on missions and had been excused from any meetings that might come up.

That hadn't stopped him from leaving for a short visit on the town though apparently.

Roxas laughed a little. "He was going stir crazy?" he asked.

Demyx just rolled his eyes. "You have no idea," he answered. "We were sitting in his room and he was playing Halo when he suddenly said 'Y'know, I think I wanna go out.' So he shut down his Xbox and left. Didn't even ask if I wanted to come, but that's alright. I didn't really wanna leave the castle today anyway." With that said, he went back to playing his sitar.

"Working on a new piece?" Roxas asked, sitting with Demyx.

"Nah, just…had the overwhelming feeling to play."

So Demyx continued to play his sitar as Roxas listened to the music and watched Demyx's hands. One thing about the musician that Roxas always watched were his hands; it was fascinating for some odd reason or another to watch as strings were plucked to create whatever it was that Demyx was playing.

Suddenly, the door that opened to the bathroom that connected Axel and Demyx's rooms opened to reveal the fiery red head. "Hey guys!" he greeted, his arms full of stuff.

Demyx and Roxas looked up to him. "So did you enjoy your time out on the town without us?" Roxas asked, Demyx vanishing his sitar.

"I wanted you guys to come, but that would've ruined the surprises I brought back!"

"…surprises?"

"Yeah!" Axel took a bag and tossed it to Demyx. "Don't say I never bought any of these for you, 'cuz now I have."

Demyx opened the paper bag. Inside were chocolate-covered ants. "Wow, and here I thought you couldn't stand the thought of bug candy," Demyx joked, taking one out and crunching on it.

Axel made a face. "I still can't, but I figured I should get those for you. I almost barfed, so be happy." Then he took the other bag and tossed it to Roxas. "This one's for you. Enjoy."

Roxas opened the bag to find chocolate mint fudge, one of his favorites. "Thanks Axel," he said, picking a piece from the bag and eating it, savoring the flavor.

"So is this all you went for in Twilight Town?" Demyx asked.

Axel smirked. "Hell no, I've got one more surprise." He came over to Demyx's bed, sat down, removing his left boot and sock, then pulled up his pant leg.

On his left calf, there was now an interesting tattoo; a chakram was the center of it all, a golden lion beneath the chakram, looking like it was ready to fight, a tiger above the weapon, looking ready to jump, and a blue dragon that wrapped itself around his entire leg, the end of its tail being just below the lion and the head above the tiger.

Demyx and Roxas stared at it in wonder for a few minutes. "What does it stand for?" Roxas finally asked.

"Yeah, and I recognize Lung Qin Xiang, but who are the cats?" Demyx asked.

Axel shrugged. "I honestly don't know," he said. "But when I was asleep, when I was getting over the alcohol six months ago or having nightmares just a few weeks ago, the cats were sorta just there. Maybe they're friends of Lung Qin Xiang's. As for what it stands for, the chakram is me while the other three are the ones who acted as guardians when I needed them."

Roxas stared at the cats for a few moments. Something felt familiar about the golden lion and its golden mane. "You think that the cats are friends of Lung Qin Xiang's?" he asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"It's just - and this might sound a little weird - but do you think that while Lung Qin Xiang is Demyx, that maybe the lion is me and the tiger is Solace?"

"Why would the tiger be Sol?" Demyx asked.

Roxas shook his head. "I dunno really," he answered. "I guess it's the coloring, and the fact that Sol's a tabby cat."

Axel shrugged. "Maybe," he said. "All I know is that I'm grateful to them."

Roxas continued to look at the creatures when he noticed some kanji underneath the whole tattoo. "Hey Axel, what does this mean?"

The red head smiled a bit. "It says 'The Guardians of Fire.'"

* * *

Well, there it is! I finally finished the 3-parter. Did ya like? =3


	7. Weapon Choice

I've been having this thought, especially after watching a few of the "Birth by Sleep" cutscenes; why or what is the origin of everyone's weapons in the Organization?

Setting: About a month after "The Cavern"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Xanrivash, or Fori. If I did own KH, I'd be insanely rich. If I owned Xanrivash or Fori, I'd probably be deemed 'officially OC creative'

* * *

"Where do you think our weapons come from?"

Axel and Demyx paused their game looked at Roxas, who was sitting on Demyx's bed, playing with Connie and Sol as Axel and Demyx were playing the latest edition in the Guitar Hero franchise. "What do you mean by that?" Axel asked.

"Well, I was thinking about why we each have the different weapons we do I guess," Roxas answered. "I can see why Demyx gets a sitar since he's been playing forever, and I can see why Zexion has the lexicon since he's a researcher. But what about everyone else? Why do I have giant keys or why does Saïx have that claymore?"

The fire and water elementalists looked at each other, a thoughtful look on their faces.

They had never really thought of it before either.

"Well, I have a good idea of why the top five have the weapons they do," Axel said. "Or I should say, I have a theory of why Xigbar, Xaldin, Lexaeus, Vexen, and Zexion have theirs."

"What is it?" Roxas asked, Demyx wondering as well.

"From what I've heard about those five, they used to live in Radiant Garden as apprentices of Ansem the Wise when they were Whole," Axel said. "Xigbar, Xaldin, and Lexaeus were acting as guards most of the time but were scientists as well. Vexen was the top scientist of the five until Xemnas' original came into the picture. As for Zexion…well, from what I understand, his parents had died and Ansem adopted him. Zexion sorta became a mini-apprentice since he was only like…what, 10 or 11 when Ansem took him in."

"…I think I remember hearing some of this," Demyx finally said. "Though they all were living in Radiant Garden, they had each come from different worlds right?"

"I think that was the story," Axel said. "As for the weapon question, I've been told that they all used something that's similar to what they have now, except for Vexen of course. My guess for him having a shield as a weapon is as good as yours."

"What about you Ax? Did you have a weapon as a kid that we don't know about?" Demyx asked, half-serious, half-joking.

"Nah, no weapon for me," Axel said. "But I had these black Frisbees with flames on 'em that Ricky and I used to play with all the time. I handled them like I do my chakrams now. That's my only guess for my weapon."

Roxas thought about this for a few moments. "Well, what about Saïx, Luxord, Marluxia, Larxene, Xanrivash, or Fori?" he finally asked.

"Good luck on the Smurf's weapon theory," Axel said. "I don't know much about the world he's from, just that he goes wild sometimes on the night of a full moon."

"Luxord used to be a big-shot gambler before he lost his heart," Demyx said. "I'm 99% sure that that's why he's got a deck of cards at his beck and call."

"That's true," Axel said. He thought for a moment about the others mentioned. "I have no idea why Marluxia would have a scythe, especially since he was apparently an Elven prince when he was Whole. Larxene's also kind of a mystery-"

"What, that's one bit of pillow talk you guys never had?" Demyx asked, trying to keep himself from laughing.

Axel's face flushed. "The only real thing she's ever mentioned about when she was Whole was that her name was Ralene," he answered. "Never said anything about using knives or anything, since her weapon of choice seems to be kunai."

"Do you think Xanrivash was an expert archer where she came from?" Roxas asked.

The other two thought for a moment. "That would explain why she puts extra bowstrings - along with the feathers - in her hair," Demyx finally pointed out.

"I dunno why, but I'm seriously having a brain-fart on that one," Axel said. "Then there's Fori. I guess it's kinda obvious, since he's a demon and whatnot."

"Okay…so what about me?" Roxas asked. "Why do I have giant keys that act as weapons?"

Demyx and Axel thought for a bit. "Maybe you had a thing for keys when you were Whole?" Demyx suggested.

"I dunno…doesn't sound like something I'd collect," Roxas said. "But then again, I can't remember anything about my other life, so maybe it's meant to be a mystery."

Axel nodded. "I think that's about right," he said. "But ya never know. Maybe one day you'll find out."

____

_Though I really hope you don't._

* * *

I honestly couldn't remember if Axel knew anything about Sora in the KH universe that belongs to Xanrivash. I think he knew something, but not enough to make a conclusion.

As for the BBS references, I had to put something in there, but not enough to create major spoilers for those who haven't played the game, watched cutscenes on the internet or anything like that...I guess they're not even spoilers since they are all mentioned in the Secret Ansem Reports of KH II


	8. Xigbar's Half Truth

After reading "Cautionary Tales" again, I took a look at both it and the cutscenes from Birth by Sleep from the fight with Braig and Terra. Some of the damage that Terra supposedly did didn't look like it would've been as bad as is emphasized later on, mainly the scar on Braig/Xigbar's face. So I tied together two things (a fanfic and a video game actuality) for this short involving Xigbar and Roxas.

So yeah, some spoilers from Birth by Sleep about Xigbar, but not a whole lot

Setting: A few weeks after "Nobody Died"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich. I also don't own Xanrivash; if I did, I'd probably be deemed 'officially OC creative'.

* * *

For once, Xigbar was glad he didn't have anything to do around the castle.

But that didn't mean he wasn't bored.

He had already given out the mission assignments for the day and gone to the firing range that was within the Castle That Never Was. Usually, when the older member finished his time at the shooting range (if he had no mission) would:

1) Find one of the other older members that he liked or could actually stand, such as Luxord, Xaldin, Zexion, or Lexaeus. Sure, he liked Axel, Demyx, and Roxas just fine, but they were the trio that were on the most missions out of the fourteen members. And he didn't know enough about Xanrivash since she had just joined not too long ago.

2) Go down to the rec room of the castle and either play some pool or watch TV

3) Monitor training sessions that were going on during the day

4) Or on rare occasions, go to the library and find something that sounded interesting

But all the likeable people were on missions today, except for Roxas anyway. And Xigbar wasn't sure where he had gone to kill some time. He didn't really feel like watching TV or playing pool, or even reading since Zexion had been in the midst of a big "renovation" of some sort in the library. And Xigbar wasn't about to try and bug either Xemnas or Saïx, especially since Saïx's "time of the month" had occurred the night before (a.k.a., it had been the night of the full moon. Usually people tried to stay away from the blue-haired Nobody if it was the day of or after the full moon.) There was no way in any of the seven Hells that the Freeshooter was going to go see Marluxia or Larxene; he was just too much of a prick while she was too much of a bitch, even for his tastes. And since he didn't really know Xanrivash - or rather, she hadn't been in The World That Never Was long enough to know everything just yet - he didn't know what exploring she had decided to do after breakfast.

So he was sort of left alone on one of the couches in the rec room, drinking a Coke.

"Xigbar?"

Well, almost alone it seemed.

The Freeshooter looked up to see Roxas. "What's up kiddo?" he asked.

"Do you remember that story you told me about how you lost the sight in your eye awhile back?"

"Yeah. What of it?"

Roxas looked a little uncomfortable, shuffling his feet as he stood next to the couch. "Axel was telling me that you told him the story," the teenager said. "But then he told me the story that you tell everyone else...and I guess I was just wondering about it."

Xigbar looked at him oddly. "What's there to wonder about?" he asked curiously.

"Well, he told me that you've told everyone that when you were Whole, you got into a fight with some guy that could deflect the shots from your Arrowguns," Roxas said. "I think his name was…Terra?"

Xigbar sighed. "Yeah, that was his name," he said, remembering his time as Braig, who had acted as a guard and scientist apprentice to Ansem the Wise. "But what's that got to do with anything?"

Roxas sat in a chair nearest the couch. "I went with Demyx the other day when he needed a few stitches after a training session," the teenager said. "I asked Vexen about that, and he told me that you had gotten the scar on your face and some damage to your eye, but didn't say how extensive it was."

"Demyx hear any of this?"

Roxas shook his head. "He'd already left when I asked Vexen about that," he said. "I didn't know if Demyx knew about your real reason or not already from Axel, though I kinda doubt he does."

The Freeshooter sighed. "Well, the stroke story is true," he started. "As is that other one about how I got the scar on my face from when Xaldin and I were recruiting Saïx. But the third one - the one Vexen informed you of - is also true."

"What?"

"I'm sure you've been told about how the first six members were apprentices to Ansem the Wise, right?" Xigbar asked.

Roxas nodded.

"I was also acting as a guard at the time, as were Xaldin and Lexaeus," the older Nobody started. "We were doing well…until I met some old coot who convinced me to set up a fight with that kid Terra."

"Why, what happened?"

Xigbar scratched his forehead, looking a tad embarrassed. "All I can say is that it's not exactly one of the proudest moments in either of my existences," he said. "But anyway, the old man convinced me to fake a kidnapping and lure Terra into a fight. Something about the darkness, I dunno. At first the kid didn't fight back, I guess out of fear that I'd do something to the old coot. But when he finally did, he deflected a couple of shots of mine, sending one at my eye and the other where this big-ass scar is on my face."

Roxas contemplated this for a few moments. "So…it's a half-truth?" he asked.

"…I guess you could say that," Xigbar finally answered. "I _did _almost lose my eye to that brat though. It wasn't until about six months or so before becoming a Nobody that I started to see clearly through my eye, only to lose what vision I had with a stroke. And the scar the kid gave me is still there. It just got covered up."

The Key of Destiny cocked his head in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked.

Xigbar pointed to the scar on his face. "See that faint line within the scar?"

Roxas got up from his seat, coming over to the older Nobody, and inspected the area that was being indicated. Indeed, there was a smaller, skinny line that he wouldn't have noticed if Xigbar hadn't of said anything. "Is that…?"

"Yeah, that was the original scar," the Freeshooter answered, putting his hand down. "Then later, when I went to help recruit Saïx, I got this much larger one over the smaller one."

"So…both stories are true, but you stick with the badass one?"

"Yeah. So?"

Roxas smiled. "That is badass."

Xigbar snorted, but grinned anyway. "And that, kiddo is exactly the kind of thing I want people to remember about me."


	9. Halloween Party: Part 1

This is part one of a special Halloween story! I hope it proves to be interesting =3

Setting: The Halloween before "Christmas in the War Zone"

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts. If I did, I'd be insanely rich

* * *

Demyx walked into the kitchen on this oh-so-wonderful morning in The Castle That Never Was, seeing that it was mainly vacant.

Well, besides Axel and Roxas anyway. They were sitting at the table, looking at a piece of paper that the water-user couldn't read from where he was standing. And since they were facing away from him, he couldn't read their lips and he could barely hear what they were talking about through his deaf ears.

"Hey guys," he greeted, coming over to the table. "Do you have a mission or something?"

Axel and Roxas looked up at Demyx. "Haven't gotten the memo yet, have you?" the Keyblade master asked.

"Uh…memo?"

Axel held up the paper to Demyx. "Halloween party," Roxas answered, as Demyx took the sheet of paper from Axel. "Apparently, Xigbar, Xanrivash, and Fori all went to Halloween Town on a mission earlier this week. Neither Xanrivash or Fori knew what Halloween was, so when Xigbar told them what the holiday is, they both said it sounded interesting, though Fori seemed more excited about it than Xanrivash, but that might be the evil-ness in him talking."

"Anyway," Axel continued. "Xigbar supposedly went to Xemnas right after they got back to ask him if we could have a Halloween party this year and - this must've involved bribery of some kind - Xemnas approved. Even gave everyone the week off so that we can find costumes for a costume contest."

That sparked Demyx's interest. "Really?" he asked. "So do you guys know what you're going to be?"

The two shook their heads. "No idea," Axel said. "Though I have always liked the idea of a werewolf, just to piss off Saïx…"

Demyx smiled. "What about you Roxas?" he asked. "Any ideas?"

"Not really," the teen answered. "Though I guess I could find something to make me look like a Hobbit-"

"Why a Hobbit?" Axel asked, curious why Roxas wouldn't want to be one of the other characters from the Lord of the Rings series.

" 'Cuz everyone picks on me for being short," was the reply. "Besides, Pippin is pretty neat. And I have an irrational fear of Larxene glomping things that are feminine, like Legolas."

Axel did what he could to stifle his laughter, while Demyx just looked thoughtful for a minute. "Is that some crack at Larxene and Marluxia?" he asked.

"Pretty much."

"Thought so."

Roxas smiled. "So Axel and I were talking about heading to Twilight Town to see if we could find anything for the party," he said. "Wanna come? Or do you already have something in mind?"

"Sure, I'll go," Demyx said. "I don't remember ever really celebrating Halloween as a kid, other than my grandmother telling me scary stories from India and the typical ones that kids hear."

"Awesome, then let's go!"

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"What do ya think about this one?" Axel asked, holding up an eighteenth century steampunk-looking outfit from the rack. "It's even got a neat hat!"

"I dunno, looks a little off for you," Demyx said, pausing from his search.

"That's why I was gonna make a few adjustments," the red head answered, looking over the outfit, a hint of mischievous-ness in his eyes.

The hunt for Halloween costumes was turning out to much more fun than the three thought it would be. So far, the trio had been to a few stores in Twilight Town that were acting as costume shops for the season and had actually found some stuff that they liked. But only Axel it seemed was making the best progress with his choice. So far, Roxas and Demyx had seen things that might be usable or costumes they might wanna dress up in, but nothing that they just _had _to have.

"I wonder what everyone else is gonna be," Demyx wondered aloud, looking through some nautical-themed pieces around the shop. Then he snorted. "Marluxia could be the Grim Reaper with his scythe."

"…if Marly thinks he can be badass with a scythe of flowers, think again," Axel said, looking at some of the other costumes on the rack. "Pink scythe and black outfit do not a Grim Reaper make."

"Maybe he'll be a giant rose," Roxas joked, earning a snicker from the two older Nobodies.

"Or maybe Larxene will make him his bitch and she can be the pimp," Axel said, trying to think of other crazy outfits for the Organization, still looking at the first costume he had picked up.

"Or if he really wanted to get philosophical, Marly could dress up as a Astomi," Demyx thought aloud.

"What's an Astomi?" Roxas asked, putting down some random costume accessory. "Is it a monster?"

"From what I remember, the Astomi were ancient legendary race of mouthless people who feed only from the scent of aromatic plants," Demyx answered. When Roxas looked at him oddly, Demyx just smiled. "I kid you not. They didn't have mouths, had hairy bodies, and fed off of the scent of plants and water through their nostrils. Only problem with that was that they could be easily killed with an overpowering scent."

"Can't see the flower man dressing up as something that's supposed to be hairy when he waxes his hair," Axel said, turning to them.

"Marluxia _waxes _his body hair?" Roxas exclaimed.

Demyx snickered as Axel gave the story. "A little while after Marly first joined, some of the members of the Organization wanted to play Truth or Dare," Axel started. "I'm not sure who - I'm gonna guess Xigbar or Luxord though - basically forced Pinky to play the game. I don't even remember what the question was now, but I think it was something along the lines of 'why don't you have facial hair?' And Marly answered that it was because he would get it waxed off when he was the Elven Prince of wherever when he was Whole and continued to do so even after he lost his heart."

Roxas couldn't help it after hearing _that _explanation and cracked up laughing.


	10. Halloween Party: Part 2

HAPPY HALLOWEEN YA'LL!

Anyway, here's part 2. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the Kingdom Hearts franchise, nor Fori or Xanrivash. If I owned Kingdom Hearts, I'd be insanely rich. If I owned Fori or Xanrivash, I'd be dubbed 'officially OC creative'

* * *

_October 31st, The Castle That Never Was, Demyx's Room_

Demyx smiled as he pulled out the Halloween supplies for his costume (most bought, though a few were borrowed) from the store bag and placed them on his bed. He had blue body paint, some random bits of fake jewels (mostly stick-on), magnetized earrings he had borrowed from Luxord (not ALL the earrings he had were from piercings...especially that one that-), some sea colored genie harem-style pants, and a few other thing.

He couldn't wait until that night. The party was still a few hours away, but it sounded like it would be fun. Everyone was going to dress up (apparently, even Xemnas was joining in on the costume fun), and the prizes were…well, surprises actually. All Demyx knew was that the first place winner got something picked by Lexaeus, the second place slot was provided by Xigbar, and the third place one supplied by Xanrivash.

Now, the first part in the assembling of his costume…the body paint.

So Demyx stripped off his robe, gloves, and Love Potion # 9 shirt that was underneath the uniform cloak. He picked up the blue body paint and started to put the stuff on his face. It felt a little weird, but probably no stranger than when a little kid got their own faces painted at festivals or whatever. Demyx couldn't really remember ever going to fall festivals as a kid, since his grandmother knew how much other children his age picked on him in the first place.

When he had covered his face, neck, ears (the lobes anyway since his hearing aids would be/were still in), and the front of him, he realized that he couldn't put the paint on his back because he wouldn't be able to see what he was doing.

_Maybe Axel will help, _Demyx thought, going into the bathroom to find the door that led to Axel's room closed. He knocked, hoping that the red head could help.

"What's up?" a muffled voice asked from the other side of the door.

"Can you help me with this body paint Ax?" Demyx asked. "I can't reach my back."

A few moments passed, then the door opened up to reveal Axel. "Sure I can help," he said. "I just got done with my costume adjustments, so it's all good."

That phrase had Demyx worried a little as he went and sat on the edge of the tub, turning around to face the inside. "Costume adjustments?" he asked, handing Axel the body paint, the red head kneeling on the floor behind Demyx.

"Yeah, I told you that before I was going to make some changes," Axel said, taking off his gloves, then getting some paint and starting to put it on the water-user's back. "I just wasn't sure how I was going to fix it until last night, so I've been working on it."

For a few minutes, the two sat in silence. "Did Roxas ever pick out a costume?" Demyx finally asked.

Axel snorted. "Sort of," he said. "But you'll just have to see for yourself at the party."

The Nocturne's eyebrows curved in confusion. _I wonder what the Hell that's supposed to mean…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"ROXAS?"

The teenager scowled at Demyx's outburst. He was _not _happy with the costume he had on for the party. "What Demyx?"

"…why are you dressed like a girl Organization member?"

Roxas sighed as he heard Axel come up behind him and laugh. "Poor kid here lost a bet to Luxord," Axel explained, wearing his 'adjusted' eighteenth century style steampunk outfit. "I don't remember the bet, but Roxas - or excuse me, we have to call him 'Roxie' now - lost a bet to our Gambler of Fate and now has to dress up like a female version of himself."

Demyx took a good look at their friend, wondering several things about the costume.

Roxas was wearing a short, black wig that gave him a somewhat feminine appearance, despite its lack of length, his own Organization coat, what looked like a borrowed pair of the heeled Organization boots that either Larxene or Xanrivash would wear (more likely Xanrivash though since she had the bigger foot of the two females), and…was Roxas wearing a bra?

Demyx could only wonder about that because it almost looked like the youngest male member had boobs. But he didn't want to embarrass Roxas anymore than he had to. So he just took a quick glance and didn't say anything else about that.

"Well, you _do _make a cute girl," Demyx admitted. Axel laughed his head off as Roxas just blushed. The water-user still felt a little bad for Roxas, but he wanted to laugh at the same time.

"Maybe now I can call you Roxie-baby, like you wanted me to back in Nexus," Axel joked, remembering how Roxas had tried to test him to figure out if it had really been the red head or not.

"So what are you supposed to be again?" Roxas asked Demyx, trying to change the subject, Demyx thoroughly confused about the 'Roxie-baby' reference. "Didn't you say something like you wanted to be something from India?"

"Actually, I'm one of the nature devas from the Hindu religion," Demyx said. "They were like elementals and had minor roles, but hey, they have neat things to do."

The other two looked at him for a minute before Axel smiled. "Sounds like you did a buncha research."

"Nah, not really. Just what I remember from my grandmother."

The trio then turned to face the rest of the Halloween party. Most of the other Organization members had shown up, but a few were still missing, but that could've been because the party started not too long ago.

Despite the party having just started though, there were tables out for drinks and a big bowl of punch, as well as many different foods made by Xaldin, a stereo in the corner as Xigbar played DJ for the night, and Halloween decorations in just about every direction of the big room.

"So are we going to guess what the others are, or are we going to go ask?" Roxas asked.

The other two looked at the party members present and started to look around. "Well," Axel started. "It looks like Xigbar's a pirate - no surprise there - while Luxord is a pimp. Once again, no surprise there. Let's see…" he continued to look around. "Looks like Fori just added a fox ears, tail, and drawn on whiskers to his normal clothes…Lexaeus is a knight…Vexen looks like a mad scientist-"

"So he came as himself?" Demyx asked jokingly. That earned a laugh from Roxas and Axel before the red head looked around at the other members again. "Xaldin kinda looks like he's something from the Caribbean, but then again, when doesn't he?…The only other one I can really guess is that Xanrivash popped out of Egyptian mythology, what with her Cleopatra-esque looke, but I dunno when she would've researched that, unless Zexion helped her," Axel finished.

"So the one's we're missing are Xemnas, Saïx, Zexion, Larxene, and Marluxia," Roxas said. "Wonder what they are."

"Well knowing Zexion, he might not even show up," Axel said, continuing to watch everyone else. "He's not exactly a party kinda guy-"

Demyx and Roxas looked at Axel when he suddenly stopped talking. "Axel?"

The fire-user continued to be silent…for a moment anyway before bursting out with laughter.

The other two looked confused. Axel managed to get out, "Look at Xemnas!" before laughing again. Roxas and Demyx looked in the direction of the leader of Organization XIII…

And couldn't hold in their laughter.

Xemnas, the leader of the Organization, who was serious every time he was seen, was never seen out of uniform, who had never shown any interest in anything beyond that of Kingdom Hearts-

-was dressed as a dominatrix.

And Saïx was behind him, in leather pants, a mesh shirt, leather cuffs on his wrists, and a leather collar that had a leash on it…and the other end was being held by Xemnas.

Axel, Demyx, and Roxas couldn't help but burst out laughing even more so when they saw Saïx. Sure, everyone made jokes about how the Lunar Divider was Xemnas' bitch, but no one thought that he'd show up _actually dressed up _as the leader's bitch.

Axel was just getting over his laughter when he looked in the corner of the room and his jaw just dropped. "Oh my God," he said. "Guys, look at Larxene and Marly."

Demyx and Roxas looked at the corner of the room where the entrance was and, like Axel, their jaws dropped in utter surprise of what the duo who had just come in were dressed as.

It seemed that Larxene had wanted to be sexy and cute at the same time, because she was in a sexy-fied Lil' Bo Peep outfit. Behind her was Marluxia, dressed as a sheep and being led in by a leash around his neck that had a bell on the collar…and he didn't look especially happy about it, though Larxene had a smug look on her face.

The fire, water, and light users would've loved to laugh at that sight, but they were in shock at the Graceful Assassin dressed as a fluffy sheep.

Roxas was the first to come out of it. "I…think I'm gonna go get some punch," he said. "I heard Xaldin say that it was some kinda fruity stuff."

"Would you get me some too?" Demyx asked before Roxas headed off.

"Sure." The teen turned to Axel. "You want some?"

Axel shook his head. "If it's sugar filled, then no," he answered. "I know it's Halloween, but I don't wanna end up in a diabetic coma."

Roxas just rolled his eyes and went to the table where all the food and drinks were.

* * *

Not over yet!


	11. November 1st: Epilogue

Epilogue for Halloween!

Enjoy!

__

_

* * *

_

Why's it so effin' bright?

Roxas shut his eyes tightly and kept them closed. He felt horrible. His head was killing him, his throat felt like sandpaper and vomit, and when he had opened his eyes, it seemed like it was really bright for some reason or another.

"Finally awake Rox?"

Roxas opened his eyes a little to see Axel and Demyx, both out of costume and in street clothes, sitting on the floor. "Where'm I?" he slurred, wondering why he sounded the way he did.

"My bed in my room," Axel said. "You passed out last night after drinking the punch."

The teenager just looked at him, confused. Demyx sighed. "It's a strange story," he said.

* * *

_Demyx and Axel looked around the room for Roxas. It had been almost half an hour since he left to get something to drink and neither of the older Nobodies had seen him since._

"_Demysh? Ashel?"_

_Well, until now that is._

_They both turned around when they heard that slurred voice. Roxas was standing there, his coat unzipped, revealing a very girly outfit on underneath. He had a big grin on his face, which was very red. _

"_Is he…?" Axel started to ask, but was cut off when Roxas all but glomped him. Roxas smiled again, rubbing his face against Axel's, who was starting to get very creeped out by this._

"_I'd have to say that he is thoroughly drunk," Demyx stated. "But how the Hell did he get anything? We've only got sodas and punch-"_

"_The punch has gotta be spiked," Axel said, trying to get Roxas away. "I'll bet a certain little mischievous demon had something to do with it too." He managed to get the smaller Nobody off him, who pouted, then went over to Demyx, repeating what he had done to Axel despite the fact that the blue body paint the water-user had on was rubbing off. "Smells like a distillery."_

"_No shit," Demyx agreed, also attempting to get the younger Nobody off._

_Suddenly, Roxas went still. "I don't feel so good…"_

_Then he passed out._

* * *

"…After that, we brought you back up here and you spent half the night puking," Demyx finished. "When you finally finished somewhere around four, Axel and I just stayed in here in case you needed us."

Roxas sat up and rubbed his bleary eyes. "So…the punch was spiked?" he asked, mainly to clarify.

"Had either Everclear or Bacardi in it," Axel told him. "Half the party got wasted, so I'm imagining that those with nasty hangovers are still asleep or something to that degree. As for Fori…when Mansex is up to giving him a lecture, he's getting a suitable punishment for spiking the punch."

"Good thing you didn't drink any of the stuff Ax," Demyx said. "Otherwise it might've gotten ugly."

Axel just made a face. "Sometimes, I'm glad I'm diabetic," he merely said. "I couldn't drink that stuff because it was all sugar. And I'm glad I didn't need the sugar for once."

Roxas smiled a little, then noticed that he himself was in his boxers and an oversized shirt. "What happened to my costume?" he asked.

"Barfed all over it," Demyx simply answered.

"Ah." Roxas thought for a moment. "Well, who at least won the costume contest?"

Demyx and Axel looked at each other, then at Roxas. "Do we really have to say who won first place?"

* * *

Who do YOU think won? =p

Yup, Mansex and his bitch did. Xaldin took second, while Larxene and Marly took third

By the way, if no one caught the Roxas-dressed-like-Xion thing...just WOW. And Roxas really did ask to be called Roxie-baby in "Into the Nexus"!

EDIT: My paragraph separator crapped out on me when I went to fix this chapter. Blame it on Halloween...?


	12. Somewhere?

Strange story concept is strange.

That's all I'm saying. And all A.N.'s will come at the end of the story

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Xanrivash, or Fori. If I did own the franchise, I'd be insanely rich. If I owned Xanrivash or Fori, then I'd probably be deemed 'officially OC creative'.

* * *

Something felt…strange.

You know that feeling you get when you're sort of awake, like someone's hovering over you or watching you sleep? That's how I felt now. Like I was being watched. But at the same time, I knew I wasn't.

…And I just noticed that there was something sorta heavy lying on the left side of my chest.

Oh gods, don't tell me I grew a heart overnight.

I opened my eyes a little to see…red. Red spikes of hair that belonged to someone I knew…was on my left side.

Sleeping contently, with his left arm wrapped around my waist, hugging me as close as humanly possible.

_What the Hell…? Why's Axel cuddling up to me like this?_

My train of thought was cut off when said red head began to stir. He looked up at me with tired, bleary eyes, but he was smiling.

Something was _wrong _about this.

Not only were Axel's teardrop tattoos gone, but he had a…loving, sort of look in his eye. As if he were looking at a wife, or rather, since Axel was bi, a husband.

The arm that had been snaked around my waist undid itself and his hand laid itself on the right side of my face.

"Mornin' Dem."

Oh dear Ganesh.

"M-mornin'," I managed to stutter back, hoping I didn't sound too weird.

Axel's face turned to one of concern as he propped himself on him right arm, looking down at me. "Hey, you okay?" he asked me. "You're face is a little red-"

Something heavy jumped onto the bed. "MOMMY! DADDY! IT'S CWISTMAS!"

A kid's voice? Mommy? Daddy?

…And since when did I ever celebrate Christmas?

I looked towards the end of the bed, as did Axel, and I saw something so cute but strange that I couldn't help but be somewhat amazed.

It was Roxas, but he looked like he was only four or five years old. He still had the same blue eyes and blonde hair (only it wasn't as fluffy or poofy as it was when he was fifteen), but his skin had a bit more of a tan shade to it, and he had a much more innocent air about him…and probably what was most adorable about him (or what made him seem that way,) was that he had aqua colored pajamas on with a colored fish pattern.

A big grin was on his face too as he crawled up to Axel, who smiled and sat up.

_The phoenix wing tattoos he got are gone, _I noticed, seeing that this Axel's shirtless back was clean of anything, scars or tattoos.

"That it is," Axel said, hugging Roxas, who was just beaming. I sat up and looked at the two. Roxas looked from Axel to me and his smile grew. "Mommy, it's Cwistmas!" he exclaimed again, practically glomping me. I did the only thing I knew to do with a little kid - I hugged him.

"Merry Christmas Roxy," I said softly, amazed that the words were even coming out of my mouth as Roxas snuggled into my night shirt. I could hear Axel chuckle a little as the toddler continued to hug me. I looked down at the chibi-fied Roxas and tried to remember what little kids would freak out over on Christmas morning. "Did Santa come to see you?" I finally asked him.

Roxas' face lit up even brighter than what it was. "Yea!" he answered. Then his expression changed. "But Daddy nevew lets me open pwesents unwess you guys awe up. Can we open pwesents now that you and Daddy awe up?"

I looked at Axel, who just smiled. "I don't know why we can't," Axel answered for me.

"YAY!" Roxas shouted, jumping out of my arms, getting off the bed, and heading out the door, Axel watching the entire time.

I could hear Axel laugh again. "Seems to get happier every year at that phrase," he said before turning to face me again. "I'm gonna go make coffee. See you in a few minutes?"

I just nodded dumbly, not sure how else to answer. Axel leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek. "Merry Christmas babe."

With that, I watched in half-amazement, half-surprise as the Axel-who-couldn't-possibly-be-Axel got out of bed (and to my relief, he _was _wearing pajama pants) and leave the room.

…_what in the name of Kingdom Hearts is going on?_ I thought, starting to bring a hand to my face to clear the sleep that still clouded my eyes. But when I looked at my own hand, my breathing hitched.

I remember once when Axel had told me that I had changed into a little kid, that my appearance had changed drastically to that of my Other's, Edmy. And it seemed that way again, since I was staring at a hand that was almost the color of hot chocolate. Looking around the room quickly, I noticed a mirror above a dresser in the corner. I quickly got out of bed and went to the mirror, only to stare in amazement at who was looking back at me.

Now, after the car wreck Axel, Roxas, and I had been in, I sometimes had problems seeing the reflection of who it was in the mirror; sometimes I knew who was looking at me, other times I didn't know who the Hell it was.

But this…

I looked like my Other…well, if he, me, whatever, had been given a chance to get past the age of fifteen. I looked like I was somewhere in my mid-to-late twenties, my body was a bit more filled out than it normally was (muscle, not fat I must add), but I was still skinny.

Wonder how that happened.

I also noticed that I wasn't wearing hearing aids…I could hear everything, crystal-clear. And the tattoos I had acquired over time were gone too, most noticeably the one of the dragon on my left wrist that was meant to represent Lung Qin Xiang.

I raised my left hand to brush some of my now somewhat blonder hair out of my face when I noticed something sparkling. I looked at the shiny thing on my finger.

-on my left ring finger.

It was a silver band with a ruby encrusted into the shape of an oval on it. It was beautiful, sure, but…what the Hell did it mean?

_Okay Demyx, let's see…you look like Edmy, yet Axel called you Dem, meaning that you're still Demyx. You woke up in bed with Axel, who doesn't have the teardrop tattoos he got after going to prison for killing his parents…he looked at you as if you were the most beautiful thing on the planet, he kissed you on the cheek, a changed-into-a-little-kid Roxas came running in screaming for his mom and dad, you're wearing a ring on your left hand-_

And that's when it clicked. My eyes widened when I realized, _Kingdom Hearts! Wherever I am, Axel and I are _married _and Roxas is our kid!_

…_but wait…can Nobodies have kids, assuming that we're still Nobodies?_

That thought hadn't occurred to me before. About still being Nobodies, I mean. Did I still have power over water? Did I have a heart?

First things first, gotta check if I had power still. The heart issue wasn't so big a deal, since I've always believed that we had hearts somewhere, despite the lack of pulse that we Nobodies had seemed to inherit. I mainly believed that we had hearts because Axel, Roxas, and I still acted like we had emotions, contrary to the 'we're not supposed to feel anything' idea that had been there ever since the Organization was started.

I held up my right hand and tried to summon a ball of water.

Nothing happened.

I concentrated for a minute or two, still trying.

Still, nothing happened.

Since it seemed that I didn't have power over water anymore, my fingers went for the spot right under my jaw where a pulse point was supposed to be-

-and found nothing.

This was really starting to bug me. _How can I look like Edmy, yet not have a heart? If I don't have a heart or pulse, that means I'm a Nobody, but I don't have any power…_

_WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?_

I sighed, just staring at myself in the mirror as my hand went back down to my side. Then I realized that I had been trying to figure stuff out for at least a few minutes and should try to not worry Axel, despite the fact that this wasn't _my _Axel…or rather, the Axel that I knew. This wasn't even the _place _I knew, since we obviously weren't in The Castle That Never Was, much less The World That Never Was.

I looked around the room and found a soft, dark blue terrycloth bathrobe on a chair. Putting it on, I walked over to the door that both Axel and Roxas had walked out of minutes ago. I took a deep breath, readied myself for whatever was on the other side, and opened the door.

"Mommy! You get to open the fiwst pwesent!"

I looked down to see Roxas holding up a small, flat box for me to take.

Not knowing what else to do, I picked up Roxas and held him like my grandmother used to do with me when I was little. "Alright, but how about I sit down first?" I asked.

"Okay," Roxas simply answered, beaming.

I looked into the room to see that next to the bedroom was a decent sized living room with a rather large kitchen sharing its space. In the corner of the room, close to one of the two couches, was a medium sized Christmas tree, decorated with all kinds of sparkling ornaments or childish, handmade things. I could only guess that Roxas had made them, since there were a lot of them and they were mainly made out of construction paper or other arts and crafts things.

Axel was humming some off-key song as he was pouring coffee, I noticed as I took a seat on one of the couches. He soon followed, a big smile on his face. "C'mon Demyx, Roxy's been itchin' for you to open this present," he said, sitting next to me and Roxas as he put one of the coffee cups on the table in front of the couch, the other still in his hand.

I looked back down at Roxas and the present he held in his tiny hands. My right hand took it from him as he decided that he wanted to sit with Axel; Roxas crawled under my right arm and sat on Axel's lap.

Looking at the box in my hands, I had to wonder what it was. I mean, I never celebrated Christmas when I actually was Whole. Even when I became a Nobody and Ax bugged me all the time about it the first time the holiday came up when we started out, I didn't celebrate it…but he got me 'very belated birthday presents' those first few times because he didn't want me to feel bad I guess.

But I could tell that these two versions of the people I knew really, _really _wanted me to open this box. So I managed through the decorative paper to reveal a long flat box…

…a long flat box that a jeweler would use…

Hesitantly, I took the lid off. Inside was something I wasn't particularly expecting.

On a silver chain was a medium sized, wavy-like music staff pendant with three notes on it; one was an eighth note with a ruby, the next a sixteenth note with an aquamarine gem, and the last one was a quarter note with a sapphire.

Three guesses as to who they all stood for.

I took the necklace from the box, placing the packaging on the left side of where I was sitting. No one had ever gotten something like this for me before. The Axel and Roxas I knew had given gifts for my birthday (or whatever the occasion was) but they were mainly having to do with restocking staff paper, bug candy, or the occasional fish (I still miss Chompers every now and then)…and this…

"What's wrong? You look like you're gonna cry."

I looked at Axel, who looked at me in concern as he held Roxas on his lap. Roxas, in turn, looked at me, a sad look on his face. "Don't you wike your pwesent Mommy?" Roxas asked, sounding a bit sad.

I did the only thing I knew to do at that moment in time.

I laughed.

"Of course I like it," I said. "It's just…more than I thought it would be."

Axel looked at me with a funny look on his face while Roxas just smiled again. "Can I open a pwesent now?" Roxas asked.

"By all means, go knock yourself out," I answered, ruffling the smaller kid's hair.

Roxas grinned, leapt off his spot, and went to the pile of gifts that were under the tree, picking out which one would be the best to open first.

That's when Axel put his cup down next to my untouched one, scooted over closer to me, and took the pendant. "Here, let me put it on for you," he said, his face softening from the strange look he had given me but a moment ago. He slipped the chain around my neck and fastened the clasp, kissing me on the cheek before pulling away.

But he still had that look on his face. Like something horrible beyond all reason had happened and I wasn't aware of it.

…which I guess _was _the case, considering the situation I was now in.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked me in a quiet voice, I guess so not to disturb Roxas as he went about opening presents. "I mean, I was kinda surprised that you just laughed a minute ago. You've been so depressed lately-"

Over what? I mean, I know I have tendencies to get that way back in _my _world, universe, whatever, but what had happened here?

"-about your parents and all-"

My parents? But…I never knew them. Axel knew that - wait, scratch that, the Axel _I_ knew back home knew that fact.

"-when they died a few months ago in that accident. Even last night, you were crying after we put Roxas to bed because this would be your first Christmas without them." Axel started to pet my hair. "I just…I just thought you'd be really sad today."

Well, since my parents were already dead - in apparently both worlds - I managed a grin and an explanation.

"I know I was sad last night," I started, though I really had no real clue what I was saying, yet at the same time knew exactly what to say. "But then I had a thought; they'd want me to be happy, because I still have people here with me who love me in spite of me."

Which wasn't too far from the normal truth. The Axel I knew had considered me like a younger brother practically since we met and the version of Roxas I was familiar with saw me as an older brother; Hell, both had said the phrase "little brother" or "big brother" often enough that I had it memorized.

"They'd want me to be happy with people who love me or care for me, especially around this time," I continued. "So…it's okay, I guess. I miss them, but I can't be sad forever." I looked down at the chibi Roxas, who was still struggling with the wrapping paper of a rather large package. "There's Roxas to consider too. He wouldn't want to see me depressed or you sad because of me."

I could only assume that part was true, especially since whenever Axel and I had gotten hurt on missions, were sick, or some other oddity, he would do anything he could to cheer us up or cry for us. I remember when I had been recovering from an illness I got from Tevar that Axel had cried for me, as well as Roxas…and when Axel had gotten sick a little while after I started to recover, Roxas had come to me and started crying because he had been worried sick about him.

Axel smiled a little, his hand going from my hair to my ear, rubbing it for some strange reason that I didn't know. But, for some reason, it didn't feel unnatural or anything. It was actually kind of…soothing.

"I'm glad you feel that way," he said. "Roxas and I have both been worried about you since they died-"

"KINGDOM HEAWTS ON A HOT DOG BUN!"

Both Axel and I jumped when we heard Roxas shout that. We looked down at him to see him very excited about...

…a big fluffy chicken plushie?

"A CHOCOBO!" he exclaimed, hugging the stuffed animal for all it was worth. Then he looked up at us. "How'd Santa know I wanted a Chocobo?"

"You told him when we went to see him at the mall two weeks ago, remember?" Axel asked, the laughter starting to come back into his voice. I held in my laughter as I watched Roxas' face scrunch up, trying to remember. I could just see the wheels in his head turning. "Kinda," he finally answered. "He said that I had to be good if I wanted a pwushie."

"And you were a good boy," Axel said as Roxas came over to us with the stuffed animal in his arms. Roxas smiled as Axel ruffled his hair. "You didn't get into any trouble for once."

"Hey!" Roxas exclaimed, a sad look suddenly coming to his face. "Mommy says I'm awlways good."

"I'm just being silly," Axel said. I watched as he picked up Roxas, plushie and all, and started tickling him. Chibi-fied Roxas began to laugh as Axel tickled his stomach, his sides, just about everywhere. I couldn't do anything but smile. For some reason, I felt kinda nostalgic, but maybe that had to do with the stories I heard from the others of when I had turned into a kid for four days.

After a few moments, Axel stopped tickling Roxas and waited for the kid to stop laughing. Once Roxas calmed down, Axel asked, "Are you ready to go to the party tonight?"

Party?

"Yeah!" Roxas exclaimed. "I wanna see Naminé and Fowi! And Uncle Xigbaw, an' Uncle Lex, an'-"

"Don't worry, you'll see them all," Axel said, laughing a little. "Why don't you go see what else Santa brought you?"

Roxas nodded, happily getting off Axel's lap and going back to his present raid.

Axel fixed his gaze from Roxas to me. "What about you?" he asked. "Ready to see everyone again? I bet Lexaeus, Xigbar, and Xanrivash will be glad to see that you're not depressed."

I could see why Lexaeus would be, maybe even Xigbar, but Xanrivash? Not that she was ever mean to me or anything - far from it actually, she treated me like a normal person - but it was just kinda…random, I suppose.

But as I watched Axel smile and look back at Roxas to watch him open presents, I couldn't help but wonder:

_Where in all the worlds am I?_


	13. I Move the Stars for No One

Remember how I said 'strange story concept is strange'? Well, here is the rest! Now you'll all know what I was on when I did this 8D

Disclaimer: I don't own KH, Xanrivash, or Fori. If I owned KH, I'd be insanely, INSANELY rich. If I owned Xanrivash or Fori, I'd probably be dubbed 'officially OC creative'

* * *

"Lookin' good there sexy."

Dear Shiva, not this again.

Axel stood behind me, watching me as I finished getting dressed for this 'party' we (Axel, Roxas, and I) were going to tonight. Throughout the day, I managed to learn that it was Xemnas and Saïx who were going to be holding this get-together at their estate.

Yeah. Apparently wherever I was, Xemnas was a high powered attorney and Saïx was his partner. In more ways than one, I can only assume.

Why do I say that? Well, when Axel had said "At Xemnas and Saïx's estate," that was kind of a major clue. There aren't many people I've ever heard of who live on a place that big who aren't involved with one another.

The people who own the property I mean, not anyone who works in it.

Axel came up right behind me, wrapped his arms around my waist, and laid his chin on my shoulder, looking at my reflection in the mirror in front of me. "I don't know why you don't dress like this more often," he said, looking at my (or this world's Demyx's) black slacks and dark blue dress shirt. And the pendant Axel and Roxas had gotten me. But I hadn't taken that off since he put it on, so I wouldn't make either of them feel bad. "You look hot."

Not knowing what else to say, I said, "If I dressed like this everyday, Gods only know what you'd be wanting to do."

Axel looked thoughtful for a moment, then shrugged. "So what? You'd still look great." Then he kissed a spot on my neck. "Not that you don't everyday…"

I've had to deal with this _all frickin' day_. I remember way back when I first joined the Organization that I couldn't handle human contact, no matter how small the gesture. It had taken awhile to break that habit, but I still hated it whenever Axel used to get drunk and occasionally kiss me.

But…I couldn't do anything about it here. If he did this kind of thing back home when he was drunk (since he never kissed when sober), I'd slug him or at least make water run down his face to distract him. But I couldn't do either here. I didn't have power over water anymore and since we were apparently married (or at least together) then slugging him would be thoroughly unjustified. Or at least in his eyes it would be.

Still freaked me out though when he did these little loving gestures though.

"Are you ready for this thing tonight?" I asked him to take his attention off me for a few moments.

Axel backed off and did a sort of 'look at me' gesture. "Just look and see what you think," he answered. So I turned around to take a look.

Damn. I'm not even gay and I had to admit, Axel looked _good**.**_

He was wearing a green dress shirt that matched his eyes, a pair of black dress slacks, a black leather jacket, and a nice pair of boots. For some reason, he had a silver hoop in his left ear. I could also see a pendant around his neck that was in the shape of a treble clef being consumed by fire.

…you're probably wondering why that doesn't bother me as much as it should. Mainly it was because I'd been learning a lot throughout the day about this universe, world, whatever I was in. Like when I learned not to call him 'fire crotch' like I did back home sometimes to pick on him; here it seemed that whenever this universe's Demyx said it, it was an invitation to things I didn't even want to think about. I had to actually convince him that I hadn't said it while he was putting the moves on me. Ganesh only knows what might've happened.

…ugh. I don't want my thoughts to go back down that road again.

Another thing I had learned over the course of the day was that Roxas, was in fact, adopted. I had almost sighed in relief in front of Axel when I found out that, but I didn't really want to add more suspicion to myself. If Roxas hadn't of asked why he hadn't gotten a brother or sister this year, I never would've found out that tidbit.

Apparently, Axel had wanted a kid, as did this world's, universe, whatever's Demyx four or five years ago. They had found the woman who was apparently carrying Roxas at the time through an adoption agency and as soon as he was born, we adopted him. I don't know how that all works, but that's what I'm going with for now.

"So I'll take that as a 'looking good sexy'?"

I snapped back to attention and felt my face heat a little bit, not because of Axel's comment, but because I had momentarily lost my mind.

"Sure, why not?" I answered, scratching an ear. "You'd take almost anything as a compliment anyway."

Axel's face fell. "I could," he said. "Unless you said it."

This got me confused. "What do you mean?"

"Mommy, Daddy, I'm weady!"

Thank whatever gods that watch over Nobodies that Roxas just came in at that moment. Axel turned around to face chibi Roxas as I looked down…and couldn't help but smile at his appearance.

His hair was still messy, his shoes were on the wrong feet, and his red and green shirt was only half-tucked in. Add the Chocobo plushie he was carrying and I'm sure Zexion would be taking blackmail pictures.

But he just smiled as Axel kneeled in front of him. "Is that what you're taking to show Nami and Fori?" Axel asked as he helped Roxas set his clothes straight.

"Yeah!" Roxas exclaimed. He then looked up at me. "Do you think Naminé wiww wike Fwuffy?" he asked, holding up the Chocobo.

"You named him Fluffy?" I asked cautiously, trying to put a smile on my face. I wasn't sure - scratch that, I didn't know what the Hell right answer to Roxas' question was. Mainly because I was not this place's Demyx. Nor did I know how old Naminé was in this universe. She could still be the same age from my universe, but by judging from the look Roxas had on his face, I had to guess she was a little kid too.

But those are thoughts for another day…if I have to spend more than one day here anyway.

Luckily Roxas hadn't noticed my unsure look or the tiny bit of uncertainty in my voice. He just smiled and nodded as Axel helped him with his shoes. "Fwuffy's…fwuffy," he said, petting the stuffed chicken. "He's got poofy feathews."

I laughed. "That he does," I said, kneeling next to Axel to pet 'Fluffy'. "I'm sure Naminé's gonna love him. But what about Fori?"

I was only a little surprised as I watched Roxas' eyes widen to the size of dinner plates. "I hope he doesn't wanna chew Fwuffy's head off," he said in a scared voice. I could only laugh a little at that statement, and I was glad I wasn't the only one when I heard Axel start to laugh too. "Don't worry, if Fori decides to dig his fangs into Fluffy's neck, you know what to do right?" he asked.

Roxas nodded, a big smile on his face. "I smack 'em, wight?" he asked.

I sighed as Axel laughed. "No you don't 'smack' Fori," I told him. "Just come get one of us if Fori starts something." I stood up, Roxas watching me as I got up. "You don't need to hit, got it?"

Roxas nodded. "Otay."

Good thing my hatred of violence was getting through to him. That and the fact that neither one of this universe's Axel or Roxas noticed that I had said 'get one of us' instead of 'come get Daddy or me'. But maybe this world's Demyx used that phrase or used both.

At this point, I'm just calling bullshit.

Axel stood up and smiled, putting an arm around my shoulders. "You two ready to go?" he asked.

"I guess so."

"YEAH!"

Axel laughed. "Alright then. To the party!"

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Well, one of the good things was that all the people I knew from the Organization were there, and only them; if any new people had shown up, I wouldn't have known what the Hell to do since I wouldn't have known any of them.

The only bad thing was that some of them had distinctive things gone about them. When Saïx had opened the door to greet us, it was pretty clear that this was no were even close to the Saïx I knew, in personality mainly. The only outstanding physical feature about him, that X-shaped scar between his eyes, was gone. Makes me wonder how he had ever gotten it in the first place.

But anyway, I digress. Saïx's personality had done a complete 180 turnaround; instead of being the cold, heartless (no pun intended) bastard that the version I knew was, this Saïx was acting more like Xigbar or Luxord. And as the meet-and-greet progressed, I would notice different things about the different members.

For some reason, Xemnas had gold eyes instead of the normal orange and he had also done a complete 180 in personality. Xigbar looked relatively the same, except the fact that the scar on his face was smaller by a lot. Xaldin was the same, as well as Vexen and Lexaeus, but I really wasn't expecting much from them; I seriously would've escaped if Vexen had gone all nice in this universe. Zexion was being more talkative, Saïx I already said.

Now, for Luxord, Marluxia, Larxene, Xanrivash, Fori, and Naminé. I have to group these six together because this was the strangest thing I've ever heard of or seen in both my Other's and Nobody's existence.

Appearance-wise, these six hadn't really changed much…well, except that Naminé appeared to be around Roxas' age while Fori looked like he was six or seven. He hadn't changed because I could still see the canines and claws, as well as his red hair and black eyes. The only difference was that his teeth and claws weren't as long as they were (but then again, this is a six-seven year old we're talking about. And I can now understand this universe's Roxas' fear of Fluffy getting his head chewed off.)

Anyway, I'm going off topic again. Throughout the this party thus far, I learned that Fori's parents were apparently Xanrivash and Marluxia. I have no idea why Marly would actually have a kid with Xanrivash (not saying that it'd be impossible for someone to like her, but Hell, the stuck-up 'I used to be an Elven Prince so you must bow down to me' Marluxia pairing up with someone as nice as Xanrivash?) That particular coupling was one I wasn't really expecting. I haven't talked to the pink haired flower man since I didn't want to go back to my universe and wonder if maybe Marly's Other had been hiding a nicer side. I had managed to talk to Xanrivash though, and she seemed relatively happy. When I had come over to talk to her, she had smiled (and I hardly ever saw her do that back home), put Fori down and started to talk to me. I commented on the feathers in her hair and she laughed. She had said that to 'get into the spirit', she had decided to put some red feathers along with the usual green ones.

Now, onto Luxord and Larxene. Though I could've seen this perhaps happening one day back in my home world, it had actually already happened here. These two blondes had apparently been happily married for the last year, despite the fact that Naminé was four or five.

Yup. Apparently in this world, Naminé was the offspring of the British gambler and somewhat psycho blonde of the Organization.

Was that meant to be some kind of irony? I wasn't sure. All I knew was that if the two had been married for only a year, that they either decided to tie the knot because of Naminé or some other circumstance that I wasn't currently aware of. Or maybe they just felt that they weren't ready until then. Who knows. I certainly don't. I've just been standing here in one of the corners of the vast room that the party was being held in. Luxord had just left, so I was alone for the moment-

"Mommy!"

I looked down to see Roxas looking up at me, tears in his eyes. "What's wrong?" I asked, kneeling down to look him in the eye. I could only guess as to what was wrong, since the conversation this morning had made me think that he liked everyone that had come to this party.

Roxas immediately hugged me as soon as I had gotten to the ground. He still had Fluffy in one hand as he cried into my shoulder. Wrapping my arms around him, I couldn't help but feel bad.

Then I noticed Naminé in her little green Christmas dress. She was standing close by, looking sad. "Me an' Roxas were colowin' in my new colowin book and Fori came over an' kicked the box of cwayons Aunt Xani gave me," Naminé explained. "Roxas told him he was bein' a meanie and Fori hit him."

I pulled Roxas away from me a little, looking at his tear-streaked face. "Fori hit you?" I asked. When he nodded, the question just rolled out of my mouth. "Why did he do that? Because you told him that he was being mean?"

Roxas nodded again. "H-he said that colowin' was gwirly," he said.

I sighed, picked up Roxas, who was still sniffling a bit, and stood up. "C'mon, let's go see if we can find your Dad and clear this up, okay?" I only hoped that Roxas didn't notice that I said 'your Dad' and not 'Daddy'.

But that also must be something this world's Demyx says, because Roxas just nodded into my shoulder, still hugging his plushie. So holding him in one arm, I gestured for Naminé to hold onto my other one. She cautiously put her hand in mine and we left the corner, starting in our search for Axel.

Well, it wasn't too hard in finding him; he was standing across the room, a small glass of eggnog in one hand as he was talking with Lexaeus. When Axel noticed us, he turned and smiled, but lost that smile when he noticed that Roxas was sniffling and that Naminé was sad. "Something the matter?" he asked, handing over his glass to Lexaeus, who was also taking interest in what was going on.

"Seems that Fori was picking on Roxas and Naminé here," I said, adjusting Roxas in the crook of my arm. "He kicked Naminé's box of crayons while these two were coloring. Roxas said he was being mean and Fori hit him."

Axel was not happy with that explanation. "C'mon Rox, I think we need to have a chat with Fori's parents," he said, taking Roxas from me. He started off in a random direction, looking for Xanrivash and Marluxia. I was about to follow him when I heard Lexaeus sigh.

"What's wrong?" I asked him. Lexaeus shook his head. "I hope he doesn't go overboard," he said. "Remember last year's party? Fori bit Naminé over some strange reason that I can't remember, and both Roxas and Axel were upset over that."

I could feel Naminé come closer to me, her hand still in mine. I could tell she was scared, but probably not for the same reason that I was.

I looked from Lexaeus to the direction that Axel had gone in.

And had a bad feeling about this.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"Your KID hit MINE! Why the Hell should Roxas apologize?"

"Because I'm sure your little brat _instigated _it!"

Well, that wasn't so hard. If the red hair wasn't an indicator, then the shouting of Marluxia and Axel's was.

Lexaeus had come with me to help find the two, as I had to find my so-called husband while holding a sniffling Naminé in my arms. So here the three of us were, the small four year old girl in my arms and the former Silent Hero next to me. I could see Xanrivash not far from the arguing pair, looking a tad miffed as her hand held onto one of Fori's wrists. Fori didn't look happy either, but then again, he rarely did, even back home at the castle.

And it had seemed that Axel and Marluxia had everyone at the party (or rather, the adult-versions of the Organization members) staring at them, wondering what was going on. Xemnas was close by, holding the crying Roxas. At least I knew were he was before I handed Naminé over to Lexaeus. "Here, take her," I said. "I'm going to go talk to Xanrivash and see if we can resolve this."

He nodded and took little Naminé from me. I ran over to Xanrivash's unoccupied side (meaning the side without Fori on it) and she looked at me when I joined her. "What's going on?" I asked.

Xanrivash huffed. "My idiot of a husband is arguing with your husband," she answered. "I told him not this year, but does he listen? No. Every year, these two have to fight about something."

So this wasn't an unusual occurrence. Somehow, hearing that Marluxia was a prick in this world was a bit of a relief to me and I don't know why.

So I just listened for a few minutes. Things like 'you son of a bitch!', 'Fori knows better than that!' and 'my child would never do that' were among the more common things yelled at each other. But then, the most horrible words came out of Marluxia's mouth as he and Axel argued.

"How can I help it if _your _little bastard son - !"

Axel suddenly grabbed Marluxia by his shirt collar, rage clearly painted on his face. I've seen Axel angry in the past, where things would start smoking, from his desk chair, to whatever was in his hands, even to the point where'd he once set his clothes on fire (but that wasn't really his fault since he was almost fully recovered from what Katrina had done to him and he wasn't thinking straight).

But this…

I'm just glad that he didn't have any power over fire here in this universe, otherwise Marluxia would've been torched on the spot, as well as any other nearby flammable objects, if not the whole mansion. But if looks could kill…well, you know the line.

Axel glared at Marluxia. "Don't you EVER say that!" Axel nearly screamed, a wild look in his eyes. "Roxas is _my son_! Or has it not gotten through to you yet after almost five fucking years? I should - "

I think he would've ranted some more if he hadn't heard Roxas' sobs increase in volume. I went over to Xemnas to check on Roxas, and Axel let go of Marluxia. "Next time you say anything like that, I'll kill you," I heard Axel say before coming over to where I was standing, Roxas now in my arms as I was trying to comfort the little boy.

"It's okay Roxas," I said, petting his hair as he cried into my shoulder, one hand holding onto Fluffy, the other clinging to my shirt. When Axel came over to try and make Roxas feel better, I looked back at Xanrivash. She stood in front of Marluxia, scolding him for what he had just done (the only way I knew it was a scolding was because she looked pissed.) But when she finished talking and Marluxia's only answer was to avert his gaze with that smug look on his face, Xanrivash backhanded him.

I don't blame her in the least. After making Roxas cry even more than he originally was and pushing Axel's buttons to the breaking point?

Oh yeah, I definitely don't blame her.

I just sighed at this point in time. There was only one thing I could think of to do.

"Let's go home."

Never taking his eyes off Roxas, Axel nodded. "I think that's a good idea."

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Well, at least all of _that _was over.

I sat on the bed that Axel and I apparently shared in our apartment, in a pair of ocean-colored pajamas. I was waiting for Axel to get out of the shower before we needed to 'talk' about the events of the evening.

As soon as we had come back to the apartment, we had put Roxas to bed since it was getting late. When I had last checked on him about an hour ago, he was curled up under the covers of his little bed in his room, holding onto Fluffy, his eyes a bit puffy and red. But he was sleeping, so I suppose he was okay. Or would be by tomorrow.

I looked up when I heard the door to the bathroom open up. Axel walked out in a pair of black pajama pants, his hair slightly damp, his face not wearing that mask of rage anymore. But he was still upset. That much I could tell.

"Can't believe that Marluxia called Roxas a bastard," I heard Axel mutter as he sat down on the bed. He sighed. "I just hope Xanrivash can do something to straighten him out."

I couldn't believe this. Axel sounded so…defeated as he said that. So I figured that I should start this conversation.

"Come here," I said, indicating for him to sit next to me. He looked at me, looking like a kicked puppy, and obeyed. When he was sitting next to me, I turned my head to look him in the eye. "What started that fight?"

If Axel hadn't looked sad before, he sure looked it now. "It's just…I know I promised you that this year I wouldn't pick a fight with Marluxia," he started. "But when I got over there, he asked 'what's that crybaby going on about now?' and…I just couldn't help it. I actually wanted to see if I could be diplomatic, but…I guess I couldn't.

"Anyway, Xemnas came over and took Roxas before our yelling started getting louder. Marluxia was going on about how Fori wouldn't have done stuff like I was saying he did, even though he did. Hell, Fori even bit Naminé at last year's party because he wanted attention…when Marly called Roxas a bastard though…"

I could hear Axel's voice start to shake. "I know he's our kid. We adopted him when he was born, were even there when Yuffie gave birth. And we both know that neither Yuffie or Cloud could've handled a kid since they were soldiers…"

Soldiers? That was new to me. Of course, so were the names Yuffie and Cloud. But since Axel was speaking about them in the past sense, I could only guess what had happened to the two of them and why they had given Roxas up for adoption.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when I felt Axel lay his head on my shoulder. "I know he's ours," he said. "And I know that Yuffie and Cloud would be happy that Roxas is happy with us. But…what Marly said…it just got me, y'know?"

I sighed. "I know," I said, putting an arm around his shoulders. "Sometimes we just get those kind of thoughts that don't want to go away, no matter how true or untrue they are."

Which is a reality, no matter who you are. I've had thoughts about all kinds of depressing things, no matter how often other members of the Organization (especially Roxas and Axel though) would tell me that I wasn't giving myself enough credit or that the thoughts were unjustified. Like when the version of Axel I knew and I were in the Nexus and I had wanted to die because I didn't think I was going to be able to walk anymore; he had basically turned me around from Death's door.

I've never seen Axel feel bad to this extent or question things about himself. The closest thing to that would be either when he was diagnosed with diabetes or whenever he thought he wasn't ever going to see me or Roxas again…well, and the trouble he was going through when he tried to sober up, but that's a completely different can of worms.

"Mommy? Daddy?"

We both looked at the end of the bed to see Roxas, crawling onto the bed with Fluffy under one of his arms. "What are you doing out of bed Roxie?" Axel asked, taking his head off my shoulder and sitting up. "You're supposed to be asleep."

Roxas just crawled onto Axel's lap, hugging Fluffy for all the stuffed chicken was worth. "Can I sweep with you and Mommy tonight?" he asked.

I could see Axel's face soften a bit. "Alright," he finally conceded. He scooted over a little and laid Roxas on the bed next to me. "Would you want me to play a song to help you go to sleep?"

Axel plays something in this universe? I mean, he plays guitar back home…does he play it here too, or does he play something else? I thought as Roxas nodded, sniffling. Axel smiled, got off the bed, kneeling on the floor and reaching under the bed for something.

A guitar case was then put on the bed. He opened it, took a very nice sunset-colored guitar out, and sat down again on the bed facing me and Roxas. When he began to play, he also started to sing quietly in a voice I've never heard before.

_**Starry, starry night,  
**__**Paint your palette blue and grey,  
Look out on a summer's day,  
With eyes that know the darkness in my soul.**_

My eyes started to grow heavy. _I know today was tiring, but am I really that exhausted?_

_**Shadows on the hills,  
Sketch the trees and the daffodils,**_

I could feel Roxas cuddling up to me as I shut my eyes to sleep.

_**Catch the breeze and the winter chills,  
In colors on the snowy linen land,  
**__**Now I understand what you tried to say to me…**_

* * *

…**_How you suffered for your sanity,  
How you tried to set them would not listen,  
They did not know they'll listen now_.**

I can hear. Are my hearing aids in? Must be since I can feel something in my ears.

…I've heard this song before. I think I used to play it when I was living on the street as Edmy. What's it called again?

_**Starry, starry night,  
**__**Flaming flowers that brightly blaze,  
Swirling clouds in violet haze,  
Reflect in Vincent's eyes of china blue.**_

…that's right. It's "Vincent (Starry, Starry Night)" by Don McLean. I like this song. And the guitar that's playing along…it's really nice. Though it sounds just as good on a sitar.

"Where'd you hear this song Ax?"

"It was one of my favorite songs when I was a kid. I used to pull out my grandfather's old records and Don McLean was one of the artists he had in his collection."

Axel? Are you the one that I know, or the one that I had to live an entire day with? But wait…

...The other voice sounded like the Roxas I was familiar with. Should I try to open my eyes and see if these are the two to whom I know, or should I just stay passive?

A sigh. "I wonder if Demyx can hear you playing."

The guitar was now being played slower. "I don't know Rox. Since his hearing aids are in, I kinda hope so, wherever his mind is…I just hope he wakes up soon."

Wake up soon? How long-

"…have I been out?"

"DEMYX!"

I opened my eyes slowly to see a fifteen year old Roxas rushing over to the left side of my bed and Axel with his teardrop tattoos on my right. "How ya feeling Demyx?" Axel asked, his expression full of concern as Roxas smiled like he had just found out the greatest piece of news in history.

"I dunno…sleepy?" I answered. I tried to sit up, but found it hard to do so because it felt like my body had run a marathon without rest. Axel and Roxas saw that I was having problems and helped me sit up, Axel putting a couple of pillows behind me while Roxas was supporting me. Finally, Roxas let me lay back so that I was half-laying, half sitting up on my bed.

"Thanks."

"Not a problem Dem, especially now that we know that you're alright," Axel said, taking a seat on the bed facing me, Roxas doing the same.

"What happened?" I asked. I was seriously beginning to wonder what had happened since Axel had said 'wherever his mind is' earlier.

"What was the last thing you remember?" Roxas asked.

I was about to answer, but then I realized that I _couldn't _remember what the last thing was. Not really anyway. "I think I was supposed to go on a mission."

Axel nodded. "That's right, you and Zexion were going on a three day recon mission to someplace called 'The Land of the Goblin King'. When Zexion came back though after only a day and a half, he was dragging you with him, saying something about how this guy named Jareth had put a spell on you and Zexion couldn't fix it or find a remedy in that world. So Vexen tried to help, but couldn't see anything either. Physically, you were fine but mentally…you had checked out."

I tried to remember anything of 'The Land of the Goblin King' but came up with nothing. Wait…

"Was there a necklace involved in any of this?" I asked Axel.

"…There was," Roxas answered for him. "We didn't notice it at first, but when we brought you back here to your room, Axel was in the process of taking off your robe when we noticed this weird necklace around your neck." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a piece of cloth and unwrapped it.

My eyes widened when I saw it. It was the same necklace that the other Axel and Roxas had given me, stones and all. "When we found it, Axel took it to Zexion to see if maybe he knew about it," Roxas said. "Turns out that it's a piece of jewelry that can transport someone into dreams that they have."

"What do you mean?" I asked. Dreams I have? If anything, I wished that I could be a rock star so I wouldn't have to fight all the time and could play/compose with the different instruments I have.

"This is second-hand from Zexion, but essentially, it takes you into a dream world that you can stay in if you really wanted," Axel said. "And apparently, it separates wishes from the dreams that we feel can never be fulfilled. Like, if I was in your place instead, I'd probably end up in a place where Ricky was still alive, but I'd still have you guys as my little brothers. I'd like to think I wouldn't have diabetes either, but I'm not about to put that thing on and find out."

…well, I guess that did sort of make sense, now hearing that after going to that…wherever I was. When I was Edmy, all I wanted was a family, or at least people who cared for me after my grandmother died. I didn't want to live on the streets, playing for money or throwing myself out there during the winter season. And maybe since Axel and Roxas were the closest I had to a family now…

…well, maybe that's why they were in the roles that they were in back in that dream world. Or since Axel had said that about diabetes, maybe that's why I could hear in that world as well and why neither Ax or I had the tattoos we had acquired over time; because there wasn't a need to fight in that existence, so we wouldn't have had scars to cover up.

"Demyx?"

I snapped out of my thoughts to see the two of them looking at me oddly. "Sorry, my mind was wandering," I said sheepishly.

Axel laughed a little. "Just don't let it wander off too far or you might end up back wherever you were."

_You wouldn't believe me even if I told you,_ I thought, a smile crossing my face. "Well, I _could _tell you what I saw, so I wouldn't be the only one who knows about what 'went on in my head', but I'm not sure either of you would believe me."

"Try us."

* * *

Wow. I'm amazed at myself for some odd reason o_O

Now I know what some of you were thinking; I must've been high or something when I came up with this story. Actually, a bunch of things brought this story to life, and none of it was drugs! (...well, beyond my prescriptions and lots of caffiene...). But anyway, I digress. This came together due to stories, video games, and one or two movies thrown in the mix. Though I will admit, the end was an inspiration from the "Labyrinth" movie.

Anyway, sorry if I scared anyone (especially you Xani! I still luffles you :3)


	14. Electrical Impulses

I was bored. So inspiration came in the form of...well, Demyx.

Setting: A month before "Blood Ties"

Disclaimer: I don't own KH. If I did, I'd be insanely, INSANELY rich

* * *

Demyx checked over his mission orders once again as he was packing. Apparently, he was going to go on a five day recon mission and Zexion would be joining him after the first two days. However, the Melodious Nocturne wasn't too crazy about where he was going to have to go for this mission.

He hadn't been back to his version of Earth since the incident with Katrina and the following Mardi Gras. Before that was when he and Axel had gone to D.C. on a mission to retrieve something, but he had ended up sick and the only other time had been when he had frozen to death as Edmy. Because of those facts, Demyx wasn't really keen on going back to Earth. The only thing that kept him from out-right refusing the job was that the recon was in a place called San Antonio, Texas. He didn't really know much about San Antonio, but Texas he did remember. It was apparently the second biggest state of the U.S., next to Alaska. The only other thing he could remember about it was that it was hot almost all year round and never saw snow.

_I wonder if it's got a bit of Louisiana in there somewhere since the two states are neighbors,_ he wondered, putting his bottle of Depakene into a pocket of his backpack, along with spare hearing aid batteries. _I know that it won't be anything like New Orleans, but I wonder if it's a neat place full of history like the Cajun-area is._

"Mreow?"

Demyx looked next to his backpack to see Connie sitting there with Sol right next to her. "Hey you two," he greeted. He scratched Sol between his ears. "What are you doing in here? Getting tired of being around Axel?"

It felt like he was shaking his head as Sol rubbed against Demyx's hand. The Nocturne smiled. "Then why are you in here?" he asked playfully.

Solace just stared at him as if to say _you know why I'm in here bugging you._ So Demyx picked up Solace, walking through the bathroom that connected his and Axel's room, stopped just inside the red head's door, and put Sol back down. Feeling the heat in the room, Demyx looked to his friend, who was tucked into his own bed, feeling slightly sympathetic. "How ya feeling Ax?"

Axel just stared at him from his little cocoon of black sheets and blankets. "Shitty," he answered. "Remind me to never go to Atlantica again, even if I'm being bribed with a million munny."

Demyx laughed a little. "Well, I guess the Superior forgot that you hate water and Xigbar stuck the mission with you just to see what would happen," he said. "And now we know."

The short version of why Zexion was going to meet Demyx instead of Axel was because a few days ago, Xigbar had given Axel, Luxord, and Larxene a mission to Atlantica. They only had to go for the day, but it had taken its toll on Axel. When the three had gotten back, Axel had collapsed almost immediately, his lips and face having a bluish tinge to them. When taken to see Vexen, it turned out that being in Atlantica for only a day had caused Axel to get hypothermia, and from there, his body turned against him to give him pneumonia, though not a very bad form of it. So he got to spend the rest of his illness in his room, with only Demyx, Connie, and Solace for company since Roxas was gone on a week long mission with Xaldin and Xanrivash.

"Have fun on your mission," Axel said. "I'll just be here with the cats if you decide to come back early."

Demyx smiled. "Don't worry," he assured him. "I'll be fine." He came closer to the bed and ruffled the red head's hair, like Axel had done to him so many times before. "I'll even bring you back a souvenir if you're a good boy."

"Bite me," Axel replied, sniffling at the same time.

"Keep talking like that and you won't get anything, not even any Mexican food I might bring back," Demyx said, a hint of amusement in his voice. "Just hope that Roxas gets back soon or you'll be stuck with Xigbar, if he decides to visit."

Axel groaned at that thought. "While I don't dislike the guy, there's only so much I can take of him," he said. He then looked up at him "See ya in five days?"

Demyx smiled. "Yeah. I bet you'll be better by the time I get back. If not, well, you can enjoy whatever I bring back."

Axel smiled, but ended up yawning. "Sorry for not being a better Nobody to say bye to," he apologized, his expression looking exhausted.

This made Demyx feel bad. For the last few nights, he'd be up late or wake up to Axel, who sounded like he was coughing his lungs out. Occasionally he would go into the Flurry of Dancing Flames' room and sit with him, rub his back, whatever he could to try and help Axel's fits stop or at least try to make him feel better. Axel had even asked if Demyx would play his sitar one night, thinking that maybe it would help him get to sleep.

And it did. Demyx had taken his request and after a few minutes of playing "Music of the Night" from Phantom of the Opera, Axel had fallen into a light sleep.

"Just worry about getting better, alright?" Demyx said. "I wouldn't want to come back to see you in the hospital wing with Vexen."

Axel just nodded tiredly. "I'll do my best," he said, eyes starting to close. Demyx smiled a little, coming over to the bed, and bringing the sheets and blankets up a little. "Feel better Ax."

The red head just curled up a little, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.

Demyx turned around and went back through the bathroom to his bedroom. Picking up his backpack, he sighed. _Let's just get this over with._

So with that, Demyx opened a portal and stepped through…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

Well, Demyx had to say, what he had seen so far seemed promising.

He had been walking around for a little while, and he had to admit, San Antonio was like a Mexican version of New Orleans. In the few spots he had been to, he'd seen bands playing mariachi music, lots of food vendors, and there was even something that really appealed to him; a river that had been designed so that people could walk alongside it or over it, if the person found a bridge. Heck, he'd even seen some boats being driven by what looked like a tour guide while a bunch of people were riding in said boat. What was the area called again? He had heard the name somewhere after arriving, but he couldn't remember what the locals had called it.

Oh yeah. The Riverwalk.

Right now though, he was in a quieter part of a park close to the hotel that he was supposed to be staying at, just spending a little time outside before he had to go check in.

_Well, at least it's not as bad as I thought it would be around here,_ Demyx thought, resting against a tree and looking around. _Though it's hotter than I would like, it's not all that bad. I bet Axel would like it here if he was feeling well._

He stood against the tree for a few minutes, just taking in the scenery before deciding that it was perhaps time to go check in at the hotel that Xigbar had reserved a room for. He kind of wanted to play his sitar-

Suddenly, he felt…strange. His body felt detached, like he was about to be sick.

_Oh gods, not here, not now!_

"Excuse me, mister? Are you alright?"

Demyx turned his head to the right to see a girl there. "Are you okay?" she asked again.

The world began to shimmer and he felt worse.

Then everything went black.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

The first thing the Melodious Nocturne noticed was that his head was on something soft while the rest of him was laying on something hard. The next thing that registered was that it felt like someone was pressing something cold to his forehead. His tongue hurt, his head hurt, hell, he was feeling bad just about all over.

_Not another one,_ he thought, opening his eyes. The first thing he saw were someone's feet.

"Glad to see you're amongst the living again."

Demyx turned his head to look up and saw that the soft thing his head was on was the lap of the same girl from earlier. "Who're you?" he asked, feeling a tad confused. He vaguely remembered her asking him if he was alright, but not much afterwards.

What had happened?

The girl smiled a little. "My name's Renee," she said. "Do you remember what happened?"

"…I think I had a seizure," Demyx answered after a minute, remembering the detached feeling he had felt earlier.

"That's right," she said. She moved the cold thing off his forehead to reveal an IC-E PACK. "I had this in my lunch in case you were wondering what felt so cold."

Demyx just looked at her for a moment before trying to sit up. He felt a little wobbly and achy, but his tongue was bothering him most of all…and the huge headache that seemed to be forming.

"Hey, take it easy, you just had a seizure," the girl said. "You need to rest."

"I can do that at my hotel," Demyx replied tiredly.

Renee shook her head. "Maybe so, but you still need someone to stay with you in case you have another one," she said.

Demyx thought for a moment for some excuse, but gave up, feeling too tired to come up with anything. "Fine," he answered. "But how do you know so much about them?"

The girl stood up and helped Demyx up on his feet, steadying him. "I have Juvenile Myoclonic Epilepsy," she said. "Where's your hotel?"

Another person having seizures? Though logically speaking Demyx knew there were other epileptics, he had never met another person that actually had them. "Uh, it's a Resident Inn a few blocks from here," he said tiredly. "I was gonna check in 'fore-"

He stumbled, almost taking the girl down with him. "Just take it slow," Renee said.

The next half hour was a blur to Demyx. One minute, she was leading him to the hotel, the next he was checked into his room, and then he was suddenly lying down on a bed, the girl tugging at his boots. He was about to protest when she said, "It's not good to go to bed with shoes on your feet." So he gave up, resting his head on the pillow, eyes closing as he felt blankets being pulled up to his shoulders.

The Melodious Nocturne woke up some time later, the headache still there, but not pounding at his head like it had been earlier. Demyx opened his eyes, seeing a wall straight in front of him. But looking lower, he saw the same girl from earlier sitting on the floor, drawing away in a sketchbook. _She kind of looks like Naminé,_ he thought as he watched her draw. Though the girl was older, she had the same blonde color for hair and bright blue eyes. She was dressed in an old pair of jeans (he guessed since there were a few rips and holes in them) and a black and white t-shirt that said:

**Romeo & Juliet  
****Spring '07  
****Akan Theatre **

He didn't know how much time had passed when she noticed that he was awake. "Hey, feeling any better?" she asked. Demyx sat up a little and nodded.

"Want some Advil or something?"

Demyx nodded again. She got up from her seat on the floor and went into the bathroom, he assumed to get one of those glasses that hotels kept in there. He was sitting against the headboard of the bed when she came back in with the small glass of water and two pills. "I hope this helps," she said, handing said items to him.

"Thanks." Demyx took the pills from her, along with the water. After downing the medicine, he relaxed against the bed and looked at her. "What was your name again?" he asked. "My brain feels scrambled."

"I know the feeling," the girl said with some humor in her voice. She sat down on the bed facing him. "Name's Renee. I was in that park we were both at to sketch. When I noticed you though, I put my stuff together and asked if you were okay, you…well, had a seizure. You were out for almost a half hour before you woke up." Then the humor was gone. "But…you scared me. I checked your pulse, but…you don't have one, despite the fact that you're clearly alive."

The Nocturne's eyes widened. "You didn't…do anything, did you?" he asked.

Renee shook her head. "Nah," she answered. "Didn't see any reason to call for someone when I could see that you were clearly alive, despite no pulse. So what are you?"

"…you wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

"Try me."

Demyx noted the serious look on her face. She wasn't about to give up on finding out what he was. "It's…kinda hard to explain," he said. "And a long story."

She gave him a speculating look. "Well, if it's like that, then I guess you don't have to tell me," she said after a minute. "But how'd you get epilepsy? Or was it a 'just smacked me in the face' kinda thing?"

"…I'm not sure I follow that analogy," Demyx said after a minute.

Renee literally did a face-palm. "Sorry, I forget that not everyone follows my thinking," she said, laughing a little. She looked at him and smiled. "See, I've had mine for ten years or so, but my neurologist couldn't, and still can't, come up with a reason as to _why _I have it. It was a strange process of elimination too."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, it started the October before I turned thirteen," she started. "I was sick with bronchitis and was just laying on the couch around lunchtime, watching cartoons. My mom had made me a baked potato and when I went to the kitchen, I actually passed out _in the potato._"

Demyx looked at her with a strange look on his face. "…in a potato?" he finally asked.

"Woke up with sour cream in my bangs," she responded, a smile tugging at her lips. "My grandpa had even come over from his house next door to see what was wrong. I guess my mom had called him, but I dunno. So I went to the doc the next day and he thought maybe I had hypoglycemia, since diabetes is a factor in my family on both sides. So for a few months, I had to use some of my grandmother's supplies to test my sugar in the morning; it was rare when it was below seventy, but it did happen every once in awhile."

The smile then started to fade. "But then…the next February, I was getting out of bed one morning to go eat breakfast before I got ready for school. Next thing I knew, I was on the floor with my dad next to me. Neither of my parents had a clue of what had just happened to me and neither did I. I wound up in bed for the rest of the day, mainly sleeping. I don't remember much about that day except trying to get out of bed and my dad being with me for a little while. He had even skipped work that day to stay with me and my mom."

Well, Demyx had often wondered how other people got the disease. This girl apparently, was his answer. "How old were you?" he asked.

"I was turning thirteen that May," she said.

"And you've had seizures for ten years…so that makes you around twenty-three?"

She nodded. "How old are you?"

"Nineteen."

Renee couldn't help but laugh a little. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I just thought you were older. You look like you could be twenty-two or so."

"I get that sometimes," he said. "Anymore to your story?"

"Some," she answered. "See, the docs then figured that maybe I didn't have hypoglycemia, or maybe that since I hadn't had a chance to check my sugar that morning, that maybe it was a seizure due to low sugar. But the next one I had a few weeks later was after I had checked it and it had been normal.

"So _finally_, the doctors started saying 'hey, maybe we were wrong!' They scheduled an MRI, CT scan, and an EEG. First was the CT scan and it sucked. Stuck in a small space for an hour was not fun. The EEG was next, and I can't even tell you what occurred after the test, other than getting in a wheelchair because I was incapacitated afterwards and taking that to my dad's car to go home. I spent almost the whole rest of the day sleeping."

"Wow," Demyx finally said. "That kinda…sucks."

"Well, it's nothing I haven't gotten over or used to," Renee answered, smiling a little. "I think the disease has made me the person I am today. If I hadn't of gotten it, I wouldn't have made the friends I have, gotten interested in theater or art to the extent that I am at, or anything else. I'd probably be one of those stuck-up jocks that I didn't particularly like back in high school since I was a volleyball and basketball player before I got epilepsy."

"You played sports?"

"Yeah. But when the next season came up after I got the disease, no coach would let me on the team," she said. "See, I had to inform the school that I had a seizure disorder, and in turn, the teachers all found out. And since the coaches at the time were my sixth, seventh, and eighth grade teachers, there wasn't a possibility of getting on a team. Least, that's what I think."

Demyx thought about that for a minute. It sounded strangely familiar. "Why do you think that?" he finally asked.

Renee huffed. "Well, see, since I didn't know the trigger for my seizures back then, the doctors wanted to be careful since overheating is a possible one and I played sports, or did anyway. So when I told the coaches who had people try out, I told them about it and thought nothing of it. But when I didn't get on either team, despite my unusual height for basketball and the great service I'd done as a volleyball player in the past, I started to really wonder about it."

_I guess that's a plausible enough reason,_ Demyx thought. Over the time he'd spent in the Organization, he'd been hurt and sick plenty enough times for Vexen or anyone else to wonder why really bad things happened to him. Like when he had gotten sick with some weird disease that ended him up in a seaside cottage for a few weeks. Or the whole 'going deaf' thing. Though one had to admit, one was by chance, the other exposure to another world's diseases.

Suddenly, he felt (and heard) his stomach growl. Renee laughed a little. "I'm surprised it wasn't doing that earlier," she said.

"Why, how long has it been since I fell asleep?"

She thought for a moment. "Well, it was around 1:45 when you passed out here, and it's now 7:45 or so."

"…you didn't have to stick around and watch over me," Demyx said, feeling his face heat up and feeling guilty at the same time.

"Don't worry about it, I didn't have anywhere to be today," Renee said. She got up from her seat and went over to the desk in the room. "Want something to eat? I bet they've got something you'd want or could eat."

He thought for a minute about things that sounded good as she flipped through the folder that was in the room to the room service section. _This place probably doesn't have khichdi, _he mused. "Any good sandwiches?"

"There's a few different burgers here, a couple of chicken sandwiches, and my all-time favorite, chicken salad croissants," Renee answered. "Do any of those sound good?"

"The croissant I guess," he said. "What are you going to get?"

She looked at him like he had gone crazy. "Why would I order food?"

"Well, it's almost 8:00," he said. "Aren't you hungry?"

Renee blushed a little. "Well, sure I am," she admitted. "But I don't want to run up a tab or anything-"

"My boss is paying for it all, so don't worry about it," Demyx said. "Besides, it's only one meal. Not like it'd be hundreds of dollars for that."

She smiled. "Okay, I'll send a call down." With that, she picked up the phone, pushed a couple of buttons, and began to talk.

While she was doing that though, Demyx was thinking. _Why'd she stick around? It can't be that interesting to sit for hours on end doing nothing. Then again, she was drawing when I woke up. Wonder what she was drawing_…_but still, why would she stick around? The only ones who've ever done that after I've had a seizure are Axel and Roxas. Vexen doesn't even stick around when I've had one in the hospital wing, at least not that I know of._

"So Demyx, now that our food orders are in, care to share your story?"

The Melodious Nocturne looked at Renee, who was now sitting at the desk chair, with a look of surprise on his face. "How'd you know my name?" he asked, realizing that he had never given it to her.

"When I was bringing you here, you were kinda out of it when I asked for your name," she responded. "You said it was Demyx, so…yeah. Seems you don't remember that, but that's okay."

"…guess I don't," he finally said.

"So back to my question," Renee said, leaning back in the chair. "What's your epilepsy story? Have you always had it or did it smack you in the face?"

Demyx averted his gaze from her to the bed sheets, one hand going to where a now hidden scar was on his head. "It…it was my own damn fault," he said after a minute. "My friends - their names are Roxas and Axel - and I were on a business trip from one place to another. The two places had well over four hundred miles between the two. Roxas can't drive and Axel had a suspended license at the time, so I was the only one who technically could. But…

"When we were on the road, Axel and Roxas were asleep in the back. I was starting to get tired, seeing that I had been driving for at least six hours or so. To make things even better, it was winter and night time, so road conditions sucked and it probably wasn't the best time to drive. I know I should've pulled over, woken up Axel to drive or something, but then…I closed my eyes for just a second, and…I don't remember after that. The next thing I know, a month had passed, Roxas and Axel had also gotten hurt pretty badly, and I was having seizures while I was in my coma, along with whatever other injuries I had gotten…and they just sort of stuck with me."

Demyx didn't look up after finishing his story. He felt…ashamed, for some reason. But he had always thought that the accident was his fault in the first place. If he had just woken Axel up and handed the keys over-

Suddenly, the spot next to him dipped under someone's weight and two warm arms wrapped around Demyx's waist. He looked down to see Renee hugging him.

"I'm sorry," she said, her voice sounding sad. "I didn't mean to make you re-live that." He could hear her sniffling a little.

"Why are you sad?" he finally asked, taking his hand away from the old scar, placing his arms around her.

"My stupid brain just doesn't let it occur to me that there are really, really bad ways of getting this disease," she answered. He felt something wet begin to dampen his Organization robe. "Some people get it from stuff like bad fevers, others are just born with it. I forget that sometimes people have to go through traumatic experiences and end up the way they do."

Demyx smiled a little. For some reason, this girl reminded him a little of Roxas. Maybe it was the fact that Roxas and this girl looked a little alike, at least, if you were going to compare Roxas to a girl. In personality, she was like Naminé, with the artist-like individuality and a wide variety of expressions.

"It's alright," he said, bringing her away and taking a good look at her face. Her eyes were watery and the expression he knew very well; one of extreme sadness. "It's been awhile since that happened, and even now…I don't know if this was something I could've avoided. Even if I handed the keys over to Axel, it might've still happened. But…I guess I've been blaming myself because I was the one driving instead."

Renee wiped her eyes. "…I guess you're right," she said. "Things can happen even if the situation was slightly different…I guess that's why there are accidents and misunderstandings in the world."

Demyx smiled. "I s'pose so."

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"What are you doing back so early?"

Demyx just gave Axel a smile, since he had portaled into the red head's room. It seemed not much had changed since the room was hotter than usual, Axel was curled up under the covers in bed, and Sol and Connie were play-fighting on the floor.

"Some…stuff happened," the Nocturne answered. "I had a seizure my first day there."

Axel's eyes widened and he sat up from his lying down position on the bed. "What happened?" he asked, meaning did Demyx know _why _it had happened.

The Melodious Nocturne shrugged, coming over and sitting on Axel's bed, facing him. "Not sure really," he said. "I was in a park and had one. It was hot, but I don't think it was hot enough to overheat me, even with my robe on."

"Then why'd you wait a whole day to come home?"

Demyx laughed nervously.

The truth was that after he and Renee had shared dinner at the hotel, he had asked if he could be shown around San Antonio. While she wasn't a local, she did visit the area at least a couple of times a year, and he figured that he could get a little of his and Zexion's recon mission done before Zexion got there last night. So they had spent the next day walking around San Antonio, Demyx on the lookout for Heartless or anything else he was supposed to look for on the mission while she showed him around.

"I just…spent the day wandering around," Demyx said. "I think you'd like it in San Antonio. Oh! I got this for you by the way." He reached into a bag that he had put on the floor and pulled out a rolled up Lone Star flag. "I figured you'd wanna put this somewhere."

Axel took the flag from his friend. "Thanks Dem," he said, looking the flag over. Then he looked back up at Demyx in the eye. "So what happens now that you've had another seizure?"

Demyx shrugged. "Vexen'll figure that out."

While he was miffed about what Vexen's answer was later on that evening (no missions while Demyx's medication was adjusted again), he was happy about one thing that had happened on this mission.

Demyx had found a kindred spirit.

* * *

Notes!

Yes, I invented a one-shot OC. But she's based _entirely _on real life happenings. I just hope I didn't give anyone diabeetus from this story


	15. Electrical Impulses: Someday

Well, after having a talk with Xanrivash, she told me that, while she liked the last chapter ("Electrical Impulses") she felt that it had ended a little too abruptly. Which I had told her that I had thought the same thing after finishing it, but hadn't been sure of how else to end it

Then, inspiration struck. So here's a short to end the first part :3

Disclaimer: I don't own KH or George Harrison's "As My Guitar Gently Weeps."

_

* * *

_

_Edmy sat in front of one of the local parks fountains, his sitar case next to him, a few coins or dollar bills decorating the inside. _

_It was summertime, meaning that there would be people out and about, enjoying the summer air, and those few people who could (or would) tip a musician. So here the fifteen year old sat, playing "Vincent" on his sitar._

"_Excuse me, are you playing 'Starry Starry Night'?"_

_Edmy stopped playing and looked up to see a girl who didn't look much older than himself, standing there with a sketchpad and a pencil case. "Uh, yeah," he answered. No one usually asked him about what he was playing; they usually looked at him and either threw money of different varieties into his sitar case or walked on, as if to ignore him. "D-do you like the sitar?"_

_She blushed a little. "In all honesty, this is the first time I've ever seen one in person," she confessed. "But my dad and brother both play guitar. I love watching a musician's hands when they play. It's so…intriguing to watch a person's hands play."_

"_R-really?" Edmy asked. He'd never heard something like _that_ before. Most people he had run across hadn't cared for a person of the musical arts, even if it was just a hobby. For Edmy though, it was a way of life, in more ways than one._

_The girl nodded. "Actually, if you don't mind, could I draw you with your sitar? You can keep playing if you want."_

_Edmy just looked at her, stunned at this strange request. "S-sure," he finally stammered. Then he asked, "Do you have any requests?"_

_Taking a seat on a park bench that was in front of him, the girl opened her sketchbook and took out a pencil from her case. She thought for a moment, her pencil poised over her blank canvas. "Can you play 'My Guitar Gently Weeps' by George Harrison?" she finally asked._

"_Sure I can," Edmy responded. He adjusted the mezrabs on his fingers and began to play, while she began to sketch._

_So for the next half hour, she drew away in her sketchpad and Edmy played. Not just for the people passing by anymore, but mostly for her. A person who could appreciate a musician and his instrument. She could appreciate the fine arts, musically or artistically, Edmy guessed, seeing as to how she was carrying a pad of paper and pencil case around with her._

_Finally, she sighed in contentment and smiled. "There, all done," she said. "It's not my masterpiece, but it's certainly an interesting piece."_

_Edmy stopped playing. "Can I see?" he asked. She smiled, got up from her seat on the park bench, and came over to sit next to him. "I don't do well with hands, so sorry if they look kinda funny," she apologized._

_Despite what she was telling him, Edmy thought the drawing was really good. The sitar was a hard instrument to play, and now he knew that it was hard to draw as he spotted a few mistakes in its makeup. "I like it," he finally said. "It's really good."_

_The girl beamed. "I'm glad you think so," she said, standing up as she took the sketchpad from Edmy. "And you're good at what you do-"_

_Edmy blushed, a frown coming to his face. If only she knew what he had to do when the seasons changed._

"_-I hope you go so far as to get your own record deal," she finished. Searching in her pockets, she found her wallet and pulled out a bill. "This is all I have on me, but I hope it helps with whatever you're needing it for." A serious, almost ominous look came onto her face. "I hope we meet again one day."_

_She tossed the bill into his sitar case and walked away._

_Edmy watched as she left, then turned to his case. He fished out the bill she had thrown in and his eyes widened. _

_She had given him a fifty. He had only gotten fifties twice in his life since playing sitar for a living, one from an exclusive businessman, the other...well, he didn't know what they were. _

_He looked in the direction she had left in and smiled. Thing was, she had given him more than money. "I hope we meet again someday too," he said gently…_

* * *

Demyx awoke to the sound of coughing coming from Axel's room. He got out of bed and went into the red head's room, finding his friend laying on his side on the bed, knees nearly touching his forehead as he kept coughing deep, painful coughs. Sol was sitting in the spot right next to Axel's pillow, looking up at Demyx as if to say_ isn't there anything you can do to help him?_

So the water-user sat on the bed next to his sick friend and began to rub his back. It hurt Demyx to see Axel like this and it only seemed like he was getting worse since the Nocturne had switched with Saïx and came back two days ago from San Antonio.

Axel opened his eyes when he realized that someone else was in the room trying to comfort him. He looked up at Demyx as the coughing fit died down, trying to take a few breaths but failing since breathing was hard to do. "Sorry if…I woke you…up," Axel managed to get out. He relaxed a little when Demyx brought the hand that had been rubbing his back to his hair and began to stroke his long, red locks. It was a comforting bit of body language to the Melodious Nocturne, so he didn't think that the red head would mind.

"It's alright," Demyx said softly, continuing to pet Axel's hair as the older male kept trying to regulate his own breathing. "You've been taking the medicine Vexen gave you haven't you?"

A nod.

"But you don't feel any better?"

A shake of the head before a few coughs escaped.

"Then maybe you should go see him again," Demyx said. "It seems like you've only gotten worse the last few days-"

"Not now," Axel said quickly. "In…the morning. It's the middle…of the night. Don't wanna wake…frigid bastard unless it's…an emergency…"

Demyx sighed, listening to his friend fight for air. Axel could be really stubborn about many things, including illness. And it seemed that now he really wanted to be an idiot. So the water elementalist looked at the digital clock on the nightstand.

3:48 A.M.

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Demyx. He looked back down at the sick red head. "How about if I play for you?" he asked. "Would that help you get back to sleep?"

"…I dunno. Maybe."

So Demyx stopped stroking Axel's hair and sat on the floor cross-legged. He summoned his sitar and began to play, despite the fact that he didn't have his mezrabs on his fingers. After a few moments, he began to sing softly.

_**I look at you all see the love there that's sleeping  
While my guitar gently weeps  
I look at the floor and I see it need sweeping  
Still my guitar gently weeps…**_

Axel watched as Demyx gave his mini-concert. "George Harrison?" he asked, his voice coming out in a raspy tone. Demyx only nodded as he continued to play.

By the time the song was over, Axel had fallen back asleep.

Demyx smiled and vanished his sitar. _Sleep well Axel,_ he thought, not getting off the floor just yet as Solace curled up in a ball next to Axel's pillow and fell asleep.

_…And thank you Renee. I don't know how I didn't realize that it was you who asked me to play that song almost five years ago. _He laughed softly. _Even if I had told you though, you probably wouldn't have believed who I had been. But that's alright. You gave me something that day, and did so again when we saw each other again. _

The first time they met, she had given him the idea that there were others out there who appreciated fine arts like he did...and this time, he thought as he looked at the sleeping Axel, she made him remember that there were people who cared about him, both here in the castle and the outside world.

Not that he'd probably ever share what he had learned. He had known all along that there were people who cared or appreciated the music.

He just needed a reminder.

* * *

I hope that was an okay ending.

And don't you ever feel like you need a reminder of something? That's probably what Demyx had going through his mind during this time.


	16. Denial Buildup

Good evening all! I'm not sure anymore where the idea for this came from, but here it is!

Setting: Five weeks before "Taken by Force"

Disclaimer: I don't own KH or the bits of this story that are from Xanrivash's stories.

_

* * *

_

_"...hereby find the defendant, Lea James Murphy, guilty of two counts of capital arson in the deaths of John Patrick Murphy and Marianne Therese Murphy..."_

_"It is the opinion of this court that you are very likely past redemption, and in any case a serious danger to society..."_

_No_. _I can't be past redemption...please, give me another chance..._

…_It would have been nice if he'd just been left alone._

_Alone to rot._

_Like a prisoner on death row. Just waiting for the guards to come and take him away to the chamber…_

Axel's eyes snapped open.

He had been taking a nap since it was his day off and he had just come back the previous day from a taxing, week long mission with Saïx and Xaldin. Sitting up, he tried to think as to why he might have all those strange phrases and thoughts from his past coming back to haunt him.

_After all these years, why now?_ the red head thought, rubbing his forehead. It had been over five years since he had been sentenced to death and died in prison, or rather, had his heart stolen by a Shadow Heartless…

…on the chamber table, just before the lethal injection was brought down upon him and injected into a spot at the crook of his elbow…

His left hand went to the spot on his right arm where the injection had taken place, unconsciously rubbing his thumb over the area. Axel suddenly found his mind going back to the old memory that poured into his mind about the day he became a Nobody.

_I gotta talk to someone, _he thought. And since Demyx was gone, all that left was Roxas…

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

"Hey Rox?"

Roxas looked up from the book he'd been reading to see Axel coming into his room. Both of them had the day off, while Demyx had a two day mission with Lexaeus to the world known as Talabra. "What is it Ax?"

"…can I talk to you about something?"

Roxas became concerned when he saw the somewhat panicked look on Axel's face. "What's wrong?" he asked again, putting the book down and turning on his bed to face his friend. "I know you didn't have a mission today, so what's up?"

Axel didn't answer. Instead, he went over to Roxas' bed and sat next to him.

"Axel?"

"You remember how I told you that I killed my parents?"

Roxas nodded, not sure where this was coming from. "I remember," he said. "I asked you about the tattoos and you told me the story. What about it?"

"It's just…" Axel took a few deep breaths before trying to explain what was going through his head. "I was sleeping when all of these…memories…kept coming into my head. Stuff like when the court had made their decision, my time in prison, and…when I died." Without really knowing it, he put a hand over the place where his heart should've been. "I could hear myself saying, 'I can't be past forgiveness,' which was something I often thought about, even after I went to prison…"

Roxas examined Axel. "Are you having a heart attack?" he asked.

The red head thought for a moment. "I can't be," he said. "This is different than the ones I've had before."

"Why?" asked Roxas.

"Usually when I've had them, there hasn't been a…trigger I guess, for lack of a better word," Axel answered, lowering his hand to the bed. "Demyx has had a few, but I think they were just reinforced depression, or his depressing thoughts taking hold of the attack. Like that one time on Valentine's Day."

"…well, didn't you just say that you were thinking about your past?" Roxas asked, turning and sitting against the headboard of his bed.

"Yeah, so?"

"They were horrible memories or thoughts that you said kept recurring," the blonde said. "Why wouldn't those cause a heart attack?"

Axel thought for a moment, then looked away, a defeated look on his face. "I dunno," he finally said, sighing. He stood up, feeling worse than before for some reason.

"Where ya going?"

Axel looked back at Roxas. "I'm…gonna see if I can get back to sleep," he said. "Maybe it'll help." But as he said all of that, he didn't sound sure that anything was going to help.

"…well, alright," Roxas finally said. "But if you need help-"

"I'll be okay," Axel said. He opened a portal and stepped out of the room, then back into his own. He sighed, closed the portal, going to his bed and curling up on it.

Maybe this was just a passing thing.

_You idiot, _a voice in his head remarked. _You're in denial. Why not let Roxas help?_

_Because Roxas doesn't need me bugging him,_ Axel answered. _It's _not _an attack, they're just bad memories coming back._

…_whatever you say._

Axel scowled, but eventually he fell into a light sleep.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_"All right - they mean you went to jail for murder. One teardrop for each death."_

_Roxas gulped. "Oh...I...ah...uh..."_

_"Don't know what to say?" Axel smiled bitterly._

_"Who were they?" _

_"My parents. Now let's go."_

_._

_"I did have a reason for it...whether it was a good reason or not, you'll have to decide for yourself…"_

_._

_"The jury was too busy being horrified by what sort of person would kill his own parents that they didn't even stop to wonder whether my story was true, much less wonder what sort of parents would kill their own child. Not like it would have helped. Where I came from, multiple murders, or murder committed during the course of another felony, including arson, automatically earns either the death penalty or life in prison. And I wasn't hot on life in prison."_

_Roxas was more than sorry he'd ever even wondered about the tattoos, much less opened his mouth and asked. "So...you..."_

_"Got the death penalty, and didn't fight it. Either way, I'd die in prison."_

Axel started to rouse from whatever form of sleep he had been in. He hadn't come into full awareness yet, but he could already tell that someone had been by. The only reason he thought that was because he felt something cold on his forehead. And the only person he'd seen today was-

"Roxas…"

A bit of shuffling, then a spot on the mattress next to him dipped under another's weight. "Axel? You awake?"

The red head opened his eyes to stare at the blonde, who was looking down at him, a worried expression on his face. "What's wrong?" Axel asked, wondering why the heck Roxas was in his room.

"What's wrong? I've been worried sick about you, that's what's wrong!" Roxas exclaimed.

The Flurry of Dancing Flames just stared at him, confused. "Why were you worried?" he finally asked. "I just saw you a few hours ago."

Roxas shook his head. "That was almost three days ago Ax."

"…what?"

"You didn't come down to dinner the other night, so I went to check on you…or I started to," Roxas explained. "Halfway from the kitchen, Sol met me and started meowing really loud. Then he turned around and headed towards your room. When I opened the door, it felt like I had walked into a sauna." As Axel studied the teenager, he could've sworn that he saw tears building up in his eyes. "So I went and got Xigbar, and he managed to help me bring you here."

What did 'here' mean? Axel wondered. He soon got his answer though as he looked around the white, sterile room, ignoring when the cold whatever-had-been-on-his-brow fell off. _Great, must be in the hospital wing. Guess that means I've been Vexen's victim for the last few days._

Then he looked back at Roxas. The teenager had averted his gaze, so now Axel could only see his profile. But he still hadn't seen that sad of a look on the blonde's face since…

Actually, he couldn't remember the last time Roxas had been this sad.

Suddenly, something wet and rough slid itself across the left side of Axel's face. "What the-?"

"Mreow!"

Axel looked to his left to see Solace sitting there, looking down at him, tail flicking to-and-fro. Then something that felt…weird…started licking his hair. He turned to look on his right and saw Connie sitting next to his shoulder, licking his long hair. Axel looked at Roxas again, Connie not noticing his moving as she continued to lick his hair, Solace just sitting there staring at him. "Rox?"

The Key of Destiny looked back down at his friend. "What is it?"

"Why am I sick?" Axel asked. "Did Vexen say anything?"

Roxas sighed. "They think it's a combination of stuff," he said. "When Xigbar looked over your mission stats for the last two months, he found out that you haven't had a day off and all the missions were multiple day ones-"

"Knew I hadn't been around here that much," Axel muttered, Solace starting to rub against his face as Connie continued to lick his hair.

"…anyway, they thought maybe it was exhaustion," Roxas continued. "But when I mentioned that you were having a heart attack when you came to see me, Vexen started thinking about some other stuff."

The red head ignored the heart attack remark, since he still wasn't sure if that's what it actually had been when he had gone to see Roxas. "…and?"

"…they still can't figure out why you're still so sick."

Axel looked at him confused. "Wait, still?" he asked.

"In case you hadn't noticed, the room's a flame-proof one," Roxas said. "Stuff in your room kept spontaneously combusting, so you couldn't stay there. So instead of sending you outside of the castle like the Superior ordered when Katrina happened, Vexen suggested that we try this fireproof one that he had built a few months ago."

It was then that Axel noticed a mark on Roxas' face. "Oh God, I didn't…set you on fire, did I?"

Roxas just smiled sadly. "You didn't mean to," he answered. "Besides, it's minor. Nothing huge. And you were out of it when it happened."

Axel felt horrible, in more ways than one. Physically, he was feeling sick to his stomach, was trying to ignore the pounding headache, and he felt weak and achy all over. Emotionally (if that still existed in some form for Nobodies) he felt terrible because he had worried Roxas as well as burned him, even if it had been unintentional.

Then another thought occurred. "What about my glucose monitor?" he asked.

"Guess who's been checking it."

Axel groaned. "Fori?"

"Bingo," Roxas said. "Every four hours or so. And as you can see, you're hooked up to an IV-" Axel looked at his right hand, as if to confirm this. "-your insulin pump is still attached, and when Demyx came back, he did what he could to help with keeping you hydrated. Unfortunately, he and Lex got pretty beat up wherever they went, so they're both here in rooms as well. Don't worry, it's not bad," Roxas quickly said when he saw Axel's worried face. "They're just here for observation."

The Flurry of Dancing Flames sighed in relief. When silence managed to fill a few minutes, he heard Roxas ask something. "Sorry, what?"

"I asked if I should go get Vexen. You don't look that good."

Axel just shrugged. Taking that as a 'do what you want' sign, Roxas got up from his seat on the bed, went over to the door, opened it and walked out to go find the Chilly Academic.

The cats continued to go about their business as Axel lay there, now painfully becoming aware of the pressure where his heart was supposed to be. He sighed. _Guess Roxas was right. But what's causing it? I haven't really been depressed about anything…_

He would've continued those thoughts if his body hadn't decided to black out at that instant.

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_**There's not a person out there who doesn't think I deserve this, myself included**__._

_At least the doctor who was required to preside over all executions looked extremely reluctant to be there. _

_He didn't fully understand why they bothered to strap him to the table - if he ran, they'd probably just shoot him. It was easier just to lie back and wait for the poison._

_Something caught his eye in the corner - an inky black cat with yellow eyes, or that's what it looked like to him. He wondered who the hell had let a cat into the chamber, but - well, what harm was it going to do him at this point?_

_As the first round was pumped into his veins - the anesthetic, that would keep him from noticing when his heart and lungs stopped - the cat hopped up onto his chest, as if it was trying to get at his heart._

_But...what sort of cat had antennae...?_

"Axel…"

He couldn't make out who's voice it was, but it sounded worried.

"Axel! Wake up!"

_But…I can't, _the red head thought. _I feel…weak…_

"Damn it Eight!"

_Vexen?_

"What happens now?"

Axel felt spots on his body that suddenly became cold. _Freezing _cold. "That should do it for now," the voice that sounded like Vexen's said.

"It's already melting you old fart!"

If Axel could've laughed, he would have at that comment. _That's definitely gotta be Fori. He's the only one in the Organization who talks like that to the antique's face._

"How dare you Fifteen-"

"How dare I? You don't even know what's going on-!"

A sound of double clicks caused the two voices arguing to stop. "Shut the FUCK UP, both of you!"

It took a couple of moments for _that _voice to register in Axel's mind. It took a few moments, but he finally managed to utter, "Xig…bar?"

Silence. The red head managed to open his eyes a little to see four figures that he could barely make out. On his left, he could see Vexen's icy blonde hair and Fori's black eyes. On his right, he could make out Xigbar's eye patch, as well as a blonde mop of hair with a familiar cowlick. "Axel?" Roxas' voice echoed.

"Can ya hear us in there dude?" Xigbar's voice asked.

Axel couldn't answer. So instead, he just stared blankly at them.

Well, until he noticed something an orange-red color appear where Xigbar's eye patch was.

"Ow, ow, OW!"

Axel closed his eyes, barely making out anything that was being said or any noises around the room. But before he passed out, he managed to utter something that he himself couldn't even hear.

Or at least, if Axel did hear it, he hadn't been aware of it.

_I'm sorry. Roxas was right. I _was _having a heart attack._

_I just wish…I knew…what…had…caused it…_

_**RVRVRVRVRVRVRV**_

_"...Did you ever have nightmares about your past life?"_

_Axel nodded. "Still do, in fact. Don't think I ever screamed...then again, I wouldn't necessarily know." _

_._

_Roxas finally realized what those little puffs of steam were - Axel was crying, and the tears were evaporating on contact. Not really thinking about what he was doing, he stood up, walked over, and gave the redhead a hug. Axel looked stunned._

_"You're not - you don't -"_

_"Mad at you? No. Disgusted by your presence? No. Hate you? No."_

_"R-really?" Roxas nodded. Axel shook his head in disbelief. "And here I'd convinced myself you would." He sighed. "So there's the sad and sorry truth: your best friend is a death row criminal. That's also how I lost my heart, in case you cared. Sorry if I've shattered any illusions you may have had."_

_"You're still Axel."_

_._

"_All of us have sad stories of some sort; that's how we end up losing our hearts."_

Once again, Axel was coming into awareness, feeling whatever that cold thing was back on his forehead. From what his senses were telling him, there were furry bodies (that could only be Connie and Sol) lying on each side of him, though he couldn't tell which was which while his eyes were closed. He could also hear something that sounded like pages of a magazine or book being flipped. So he could take a pretty good guess at who was in the room with him.

Slowly, he opened his eyes to find the room mostly dark, only lit by a small light attached to the wall. Looking to his right, he could make out the person who had gone to seek out when this had all started.

"Roxas?"

The teenager looked up from his book to see Axel studying him with a sort of glassy, jade-green stare. "Axel!" he exclaimed, leaping from his seat, managing to drop his book onto the floor and surprising the cats at the same time; both Sol and Connie went flying off the bed to hide under other pieces of furniture.

Roxas just looked over the red head, as if he were making sure he was really there. His eyes began to water up, then the tears fell. Axel, of course, was thoroughly confused. "Rox? What's wrong?"

The blonde didn't answer. Instead, he leaned over and hugged Axel.

"Roxas?"

"Kingdom Hearts Ax," the teenager finally uttered. "I've been worried sick about you. Vexen said he wasn't sure if you were gonna come out of this intact…" Roxas' voice started breaking as his arms tightened around Axel. "He…he s-said you might've…had b-brain d-d-damage…b-because of the fever…or that you'd…n-never wake up…"

Axel just looked stunned, but eventually, he brought an arm around to hug Roxas. "It's alright little brother," he said quietly, listening to the sobs that were threatening to break out. "So don't waste any tears on me. I'm fine now."

Roxas pulled back, looking down at Axel, more tears threatening to fall. This made the older one feel bad, probably worse than the first time he woke up. "It's okay," he reassured the teen. "I'm not going anywhere."

The Key of Destiny gave a watery smile, trying to put on a happy face. "I know," he said. "But…I couldn't help but be scared-"

"It was a heart attack Rox," Axel said. "I just didn't want to admit it."

Roxas laughed a little, wiping away the tears that were left. "That's what you said before you passed out last time."

"I did?"

"Yeah. You said I was right and that you only wished you knew what was causing it."

Axel sighed. "Actually, I think I did figure it out. It just took awhile to remember it."

"Remember what?"

"The day I became a Nobody."

Roxas looked at him, stunned, then sat down on the bed, facing Axel. "The…day you became a Nobody?" he asked.

"Yeah. The courtroom where I was sentenced, my year in prison, the execution…all of that happened six to seven years ago the day I started having the attack, depending on which you're counting first," Axel told him. "Then…a couple of other memories found their way into my brain. Like when you asked about my tattoos, or once when Demyx asked if I had nightmares about my Other's life. And…I guess I felt better about it."

"Felt better?" Roxas asked.

"Yeah. Do you remember what I told you about losing our hearts when you asked me about my teardrop tattoos?"

Roxas thought for a minute. "…All of us have sad stories of some sort; that's how we end up losing our hearts."

"Exactly," Axel said. "It took me awhile to remember that…so I guess I was just in denial, or forgot about all that."

Roxas smiled. "It's okay though. You admitted it finally," he said. "I just hope Xigbar is able to forgive you for what'cha did to his eye patch."

"What'd I do?"

"You set my damn eye on fire, that's what!"

Eight and Thirteen heard that voice from the ceiling to see Xigbar upside down. "You set my eye patch on fire, you damn pyro!"

Axel laughed nervously as the Freeshooter came down from his spot. "Uhm…sorry?"

Xigbar sighed, coming to the side that Roxas wasn't occupying. It was then that Axel got to see the patch of gauze over the older man's right eye and the bandages that kept it in place. He sighed. "I'm sorry Xigbar. I didn't-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Two interrupted. "It's what ya do when you're sick; things spontaneously combust. My eye patch just happened to be one of those things. At least you don't barf rose petals like Marluxia does when he's sick."

The other two stared at Xigbar. "Marly barfs _rose petals_?" Roxas finally asked.

The Freeshooter smiled. "Sure does," he said. "They even change color, depending on how sick he is."

The Flurry and Key looked at each other.

And burst out laughing.


	17. I Wondered About Forgiveness

Okay, this one's a little different. After getting permission from Xanrivash, I came up with a 'What If' story for "Stronger than Whiskey", which if you're familiar with this story, Axel is overcoming an addiction to alcohol. Well, in the fashion of another story she did for the "Into the Void" that was also a 'what if' story for "Into the Nexus", there's a sectioned off part for this.

Setting: This takes place during the end of the 12th chapter of "Stronger than Whiskey"

Disclaimer: I don't own KH, the first part of this story, or Connie. Though I wish I did own a kitten like Consolation T-T

* * *

Axel felt very alone just then. Roxas hadn't shown up again, Demyx hadn't come by yet today, Fori and Vexen were still treating him like a non-person, and even Sol had left without warning. Like Sol could have warned him, but...

And he still had that mental image of Demyx, brutally scarred, crippled and disfigured, but still smiling and saying "It's all right...it's not so bad..."

God, what had he done? Sure, maybe he hadn't...done the worst possible thing, but...if his arm was so badly twisted and locked up from scar tissue he couldn't play...God, he might as well have killed him; it would have been kinder...

_Get a grip, you. It's probably not nearly that bad. Maybe his skin will look funny, but he probably won't be crippled for life..._

If only he had something to do besides eat and think. And he'd already eaten his whole dinner, slowly, even though he hadn't had much of an appetite. Right now, among all his other concerns, he was hoping it wouldn't come up. The Valium was still messing with his stomach, even though Vexen was giving him a lower dose all the time. He wished he was still getting enough to knock him reliably silly. On that much medication, he wouldn't worry about so much...

"Hey, Ax."

Axel sighed heavily. "Hey, Demyx..." _Go away,_ he wished he could say. _Leave me alone. Don't force me to think about what I've done to you._

Demyx smiled shyly, reached into his sling with his good hand, and extracted a Siamese kitten. "Roxas had a heart attack - he's sleeping right now," he offered by way of explanation. "Solace is keeping him company. This is Consolation."

Axel blinked. Well, that answered why Roxas hadn't come back... "So this is Consolation," he said softly. "I'd sort of wondered when I'd get to see her...she's cute." He sat down on the bed - a change from the pacing he'd been doing for an hour - and Demyx set Connie in his lap. She promptly stretched up, placing her dainty dark paws on his shoulder. Then, much to Axel's surprise, she hopped up on his shoulder and started nibbling at his hair. "Hey -!"

Demyx giggled. "Maybe I should have warned you. She has a thing for hair."

Axel groaned. "What does she do with it?"

"Just nibbles at it, and she licks mine a lot, though I guess yours is too long for that. She doesn't pull it out or anything."

"That's a relief..." Fortunately, Connie seemed to decide that, at least as a plaything, Axel's hair was inferior to Demyx's, and hopped back down into his lap, mewing as if asking to be petted. Axel obeyed unthinkingly. "She's sweet," he commented. "Solace has a bit of an attitude."

Demyx chuckled. "I know. But that's a nice cat you got, I have to say. Not five minutes after we figured out Roxas was having a heart attack, he popped straight up and started snuggling up to him like he'd been bathing in catnip." He coughed slightly. "Uh...actually, he...he led us up here right...right before you had a seizure. He woke me up in the middle of the night and basically made us tail him all the way to the hospital wing."

Axel's eyes bulged. "Wow," he said after a moment. "I guess." He paused for a moment as a troubling thought occurred to him. "You know...if Sol can predict seizures, maybe you should have him. I mean -"

Demyx shook his head. "I'm good enough at predicting my own seizures to get by, trust me. I'd hate to steal your cat."

* * *

Demyx then sighed. "Y'know Ax, you really scared me."

Axel's expression changed to an uncomfortable one, fixating his gaze on the Siamese kitten on his lap. "I know I did," he said quietly. "And I don't expect you'd-"

The Melodious Nocturne cut him off. "I'm not talking about what started all this. I'm talking about the night you had that seizure."

The red head looked at him curiously as the blonde sat in the only chair in the room. **Why did that scare you?** Axel signed when Demyx was facing him from his seat, Connie watching his hands with interest. **You have seizures too.**

"Why are you signing all of a sudden?" Demyx asked. Axel shrugged. **Voice is starting to get tired, **was his answer. Demyx accepted this reply and continued.

"I know what seizures are like before and after, but until Solace brought us here that night…I'd never known what it was _really _like. And how you were acting before it happened…"

Axel looked at him, a curious look on his face. **What was I doing? **he signed.

Now _Demyx _was the one who looked uncomfortable. "Well…you looked bad. And I'm not talking like the 'oh you're sick so you look bad' kind, I mean…" he thought for a minute. "You looked like someone had been torturing you. You looked at me like I was Satan himself and held up your arms, asking that Lung Qin Xiang end your life, and if he wasn't here to do that…to help you. What you meant by that part, I'm not sure other than maybe helping you kill yourself…"

_(Tell Demyx I'm sorry...I'm so sorry...so sorry...) He held out his hands beseechingly. (Are you going to kill me for it? If not, please, help me...) Suddenly, Axel's eyes rolled back in his head. His entire body went rigid; a long moment later, he started twitching and jerking uncontrollably._

_Demyx clung tightly to Roxas. "Roxas...oh, Gods...what..."_

_"He's having a seizure, Demyx." Roxas's voice was unusually low and intent. "That's what you look like when you have a seizure...Kingdom Hearts. Get Vexen. Get Vexen!"_

Axel's fingertips went to the bandages as Demyx stopped for a moment. _I did that?_ the red head thought. _I don't remember any of that. Then again, I guess I wouldn't since I had a seizure and Demyx usually doesn't remember what happened right before either…_

"I…I guess I know what you guys see whenever I have a seizure."

That line snapped Axel back to reality. Demyx was looking at the floor, a sad look in his eyes and Connie was curling up on Axel's lap, content to just lie there. "I'd always kinda wondered what happened, but never asked because I didn't know what I'd hear," Demyx continued. "And when Vexen said that it was delirium tremors or whatever, it…I dunno what I felt…I think I was beyond scared at that moment…"

Axel was still curious. There seemed to be more to the story, or at least something that the blonde wasn't telling him. **What happened then? **he signed.

"Roxas went to get Fori so he could check your glucose," the Nocturne answered. "When he left, I sat with you. I couldn't just leave you alone-"

**You should have.**

Demyx was appalled by this. "Why do you think I should have left?" he asked.

Axel looked down at the kitten on his lap. Somewhere along the line, Connie had fallen into a light sleep, purring contently. **Because…I'm past forgiveness, **Axel signed. **I kept hurting you when I was drunk. Then…Roxas. Why would either of you want to stick around?**

The Melodious Nocturne sighed, a half smile coming to his face. "Do you know how many times you've helped me and Roxas through the years?" he asked. "I mean, you're willing to get off the alcohol. Like I said once before, it's a monster. Stop drinking and it goes away." He paused for a moment, letting Axel try to understand. "Truthfully, I think I was more scared watching that one seizure than anything else that's happened."

Axel looked back up. **Why?**

"Because I caught a glimpse of what you guys have to deal with," Demyx said. "The only difference was that you were out of it for days afterward. Roxas and I were both hoping for you to come back from wherever you thought you were…you were so sick for the next few days that I wasn't sure if you _were _going to snap out of it and be yourself again." He smiled a little, giving Axel a look that the red head had given him many a time. "Why do you think we were so happy when you let go of the death grip you had on Roxas' head the other day?"

The red head let these thoughts sink into his head. Finally, he signed, **So…I'm not past all hope?**

"Of course not."

**What about you and Roxas?**

Demyx sighed. "Roxas just wants you to be okay," he said. "I think that's one of the reasons he had a heart attack now; he's worried about a million things at once. Me…I need time. But that's what everyone needs I think." He brought his good hand to his arm in the sling. "Everything heals with time. Broken hearts to broken limbs, they all mend-"

"But I nearly killed you," Axel said, putting his finger back over the tube. "I-"

"You damn near killed yourself because you felt so guilty over that and hitting Roxas," Demyx pointed out. "Isn't that right?"

Axel nodded reluctantly.

"Feeling guilt over that means that you're not past redemption," Demyx said. "I'd only be worried if you weren't feeling guilty over anything."

Axel cracked a smile after a minute. "Somehow, that makes me feel better."

* * *

I hope that wasn't too sappy :P


	18. Your Time is Running Out

Happy Early Valentine's!

Setting: The Feburary before Roxas joins the Organization...so right now, it's Organization XII, not XIII

* * *

Axel sighed, closing his eyes as he stood in front of the Proof before him.

He was on the verge of a breakdown; a week ago, Xaldin, Demyx, and Zexion left for a four day mission for basic recon due to rumors of a giant Heartless being spotted in the area. They had to leave as soon as the mission orders were given out, which while a little unusual, was not completely unheard of for a mission. But for a recon mission? That was a little strange.

Axel opened his eyes and looked at the Proof, sitting down in front of it. "Hey. I just thought you might be getting lonely, so I came down here to see you."

Of course, the blood-red Proof of Existence didn't answer. It merely continued to glow its red color.

Axel sighed, then turned to the items he had brought down with him; a candle held within a glass bowl, a small vase filled with heath flowers, and the guitar that he had used when he and Demyx had first started lessons. Taking the items, he placed the candle on one end and the vase on the other end in front of the Proof, lighting the candle wick with a small burst of flame from his index finger. He then picked up his guitar, picking at it for a minute to make sure it was tuned.

"I remember once you told me about Hindu funeral rights and beliefs," Axel said to the Proof. "That the person is usually cremated a day after their death, the mourners are supposed to wear white…stuff like that. Well, I can't cremate you since…since you faded already…and I just can't bring myself to wear white. I know it might kinda be an insult, but…it isn't something I'm familiar with." He was finally satisfied with the guitar tune and looked at the slab in front of him. "I can't play a sitar to save my life, and if I could buy one, I'd leave one here for you…you'll just have to do with this instead."

Axel started playing, singing of the song that he had found, thinking about the memory of when his best friend left.

"_**Tick tock, hear the clock countdown,  
Wish the minute hand could be rewound,  
So much to do and so much I need to say,  
Will tomorrow be too late?"**_

_The red head and his friend were just sitting on his bed, talking about weird things that had happened during Axel's mission earlier in the day when an envelope appeared on the bed in front of his companion. As the other opened up the white envelope, Axel could only wonder why a mission was being issued this late in the day. It was just after dinner. _

_Couldn't the mission wait until the next day, when Xigbar usually handed them out?_

"_**Feel the moment slip into the past,  
Like sand through an hourglass,  
In the madness, I guess, I just forget  
To do all the things I said…"**_

"_What's the mission Dem?" the red head asked, seeing the confused look on the blonde's face. _

"…_it's a four day recon mission to a place called Charn with Zexion and Xaldin," he answered. "And it says that we have to leave at once."_

_That sentence made Axel's non-existent heart hit the pit of his stomach. "At once?" he asked. "Does it say why?"_

_Demyx shook his head. "No. Just says 'you are to leave immediately'."_

"_**Time passes by, never thought I'd wind up,  
One step behind, now I've made my mind up,"**_

_Axel didn't have a good feeling about this. Something about this mission just screamed 'danger', though he wasn't sure why. He hadn't ever heard of the world of Charn, so perhaps that was why. The other reason that the word 'danger' kept popping up in Axel's head was perhaps because of the fact that two of the "Original Six" were going._

"_Demyx…I don't think you should go."_

_Said blonde looked at him like he was nuts. "Are you crazy?" he asked as he got up from his seat on Axel's bed. "I don't want the Superior to get on me for skipping out of a mission-"_

"_Fake sick then!" Axel exclaimed frantically. "You've done it before."_

_"Ax, that was because I was nervous about something that I didn't have to do," Demyx said. "I have to do this, and if I don't, they'll probably turn me into a Dusk."_

"_**Today, I'm gonna try a little harder,  
Gonna make every minute last longer,  
Gonna learn to forgive and forget,  
'Cause we don't have long, gonna make the most of it…"**_

_Axel knew that this was true. The Superior of Organization XII liked to use that threat every once in awhile during meetings to try and keep the other members in check. Axel didn't think that anyone would ever be turned into one, but knowing that there was someone with the power to do so…_

"_Please Demyx, don't."_

_The Nocturne just smiled sadly. "I'll see you when I get back, 'k?" With that, he opened up a corridor and left Axel's room._

Axel stopped playing the instrument as his eyes began to cloud with puffs of steam that were his equivalent to tears. "Why Demyx?" he whispered. "Why didn't you listen to me? W-why didn't you s-stay behind? I know you were s-s-scared to go…"

He put the guitar down in front of his friend's Proof of Existence and broke down crying.

For a long time, the red head just sat there, his head buried in his hands as he sobbed. When he was finally able to get a control on his emotions (he, like Demyx, believed that they really did have them somewhere. Demyx had been proof enough that they still 'felt'), Axel raised his head and looked at the slab in front of him. "Why'd you have to go?" he asked in a small voice. "You were…are my kid brother. Why would you leave?"

That's when he noticed something carved on the slab in front of him, underneath Demyx's title "The Melodious Nocturne". He couldn't read it, but he recognized the script, seeing as Demyx himself had written in Hindi a few times.

"_Aura saba sē ūpara, yāda hai ki āpa mēṁ saṅgīta mila gayā hai_."

Axel nearly jumped in surprise when he heard _that_. Frantically looking around, he didn't see anything or anyone.

"_Over here asshat_!"

The red head looked behind him to see Demyx…wait, what?

Except…he was see through. Like a ghost. "…Demyx?" Axel asked. "Is that…really you?"

The blonde ghost gave a laugh. "_Of course it is. Who're you expecting, King Mickey_?"

"But…you're dead."

Demyx huffed. "_In a manner of speaking, sure I am_," he said. "_But I'm waiting for the reincarnation cycle to kick in, so I thought I'd come back here_." His expression grew sad. "_I didn't think you'd be so broken up over this_."

To say Axel was surprised at that sentence was an understatement. "Why wouldn't I be?" he nearly yelled. "You're my little brother! If you hadn't…gone on that mission…"

Demyx frowned. "_I know. I got myself killed on that stupid mission to Charn. But it wasn't because I tried to stick around and fight…Xaldin, Zexion, and I tried to escape but the ruler wouldn't let us. So…we had to fight back." _He came over to Axel, the red head looking up at him with puffs of steam coming from the corners of his eyes. "_Do you know what I engraved on my own Proof?_"

Axel looked confused, then looked back at the slab. He still didn't know what the phrase meant, much less knew how to read it. "What does it mean?" he asked.

"_It's Hindi for 'remember above all else, you've got the music in you',_" Demyx answered. "_I thought it was appropriate when I carved it…I just didn't think I'd die so soon after doing so…_"

Another pang of sadness hit Axel when he heard that.

"_Axel, I think it's time for you to wake up._"

The red head looked at his friend, confused. "What do you mean? I _am _awake."

"_No you're not. Axel, I've been worried about you…_"

"What the Hell are you talking about? I'm awake, got it memorized!" Axel yelled, the tears coming back. "I-"

"_Axel, open your eyes_."

The poor red head was thoroughly confused.

"_Eight!_"

* * *

"-ake up anytime soon?"

"That all depends. Despite his fever breaking, his delusions have been keeping him in a strange mind setting for several days, so upon his awakening, he may be confused and still in the mindset of whatever his fever was conjuring."

Axel could hear voices above him, as well as feel something wet on his forehead.

"But…if his fever broke, then wouldn't he have woken up by now?"

A 'hmph' sound. "One would believe so, but who knows what Eight managed to pick up in that strange world. Three and Six were not exactly fountains of information about that particular world, other than it being a dead one."

_Xaldin and Zexion? What do they have to do with anything?_

"But it's been blacklisted now right? Since there wasn't anything there?"

"The Superior had announced that about three days ago, after Six and Three gave their entire reports. However, I am still puzzled as to why there was a reconnaissance mission there, despite it being a dead world…"

Axel opened his eyes a little, seeing two outlines of other people. He couldn't tell who they were just yet, just blurry outlines due to the semi-darkness of the room.

"Well well, looks like he lives."

_What? _Axel forced his eyes to focus. Eventually, the outlines of the two figures started to focus; one had long hair that trailed over his shoulders.

Vexen obviously. The other however…

The red head's eyes widened at the sight of a familiar mull-hawk.

"Axel?"

"…am I dead?"

Demyx looked at his friend in confusion. "Of course not. Why would you be?"

Axel sat up slowly, ignoring the cloth that had been on his forehead as it fell off onto his lap, just staring at Demyx. "Ax?"

The red head stared at him for a few seconds in disbelief._ He's here…he's alive…_

Demyx continued to stare at him in confusion. "Ax what's - hey!"

The red head had latched himself onto Demyx, hugging him for all he was worth, puffs of steam rising from the corners of his closed eyes. "What the heck - ?"

Vexen rolled his eyes and excused himself, seeing as to how Axel was now awake and needed some other things that weren't in the room currently.

Demyx looked down at Axel, putting his own arms around the red head, wondering what was going through his friend's head. "Ax, what's wrong? Why are you crying?" For a few minutes, the world was silent, Demyx just letting his friend cry over something he had no idea of.

"I thought you had died."

"…why would you think that?"

"Y-you went on some mission to a world called Charn…a-and you…faded b-b-before you could c-come back…" the red head managed to stammer. "Axel, I haven't been on a mission in weeks," Demyx said. "And that was you who went there."

The Flurry of Dancing Flames looked up at his friend. "…what?"

"About a week ago, we were in your room, just sorta hanging out since we were bored when a mission envelope came for you," the Melodious Nocturne explained. "You had to leave immediately with Xaldin and Zexion for Charn, even though it was already after dinner. You guys were supposed to be gone for about five days, but Xaldin and Zexion came back with you after only a day and a half and…you were half out of your mind."

To say that Axel was shocked was an understatement. "What…what do you mean?"

"You were burning up with a fever, even by your standards of body temperature," Demyx said. "Vexen thinks you probably caught something while you were there, but doesn't know what it could've possibly been since Charn's apparently a dead world." He petted Axel's hair in an attempt to make the red head feel a bit better. "You've been out of it ever since they brought you back."

At this point, Axel was plain out confused. "But…you were dead," he protested. "Your Proof was red…I even went down there and saw you…"

Demyx shook his head. "Just a dream," he reassured him, still petting his hair. "Though did you hear a song?"

"…when I was at the Proof, I pulled out that guitar that you used to teach me with and started singing…"

Demyx smiled a little. "Guess you heard me then," he said. "When Vexen said that he wasn't sure if you were gonna get better or not, I felt like I should do something, anything that could wake you up. So I brought out my sitar and started singing, thinking that it might help."

Axel, who was exhausted and confused at this point, untangled himself from Demyx. "So…it was all a dream?"

Demyx nodded. "Yeah, but not one that left you rested obviously," he said. "Lay back down and get some sleep okay?"

Axel just sat there for a minute. "…stay with me?" he finally asked. He was afraid that if he went to sleep, he'd wake up and Demyx would be gone. Usually, Axel wouldn't let a fear like that get to him, especially after all the crap the two had been through already…but after such a real dream…

Demyx smiled a little. "Alright," he agreed. "I could use a nap anyway."

Axel scooted over a little bit, making room on the Infirmary bed for Demyx to lie down. As Axel snuggled up under the covers, Demyx laughed inwardly at the childish side of his friend; the red head would never admit it, but despite being the older one, he was still very much a kid. The blonde lay down next to Axel and grinned. "Mīṭhē sapanē…big brother."

Axel smiled back sleepily. "Codladh daingean…little brother."

When Vexen came back later to do his checkup on the red head, he didn't bother; it seemed that Axel was at peace for the first time in almost a week with Demyx by his side, so the Chilly Academic wouldn't bother the pair that slept away.

* * *

This was originally supposed to have ties with Valentine's Day to it, but not involving romantic love. Instead, it came out to a familial kind of love in this fashion. Not exactly what I was going for, but if it works, it works

Mithe sapane = Sweet dreams

Codladh daingean = Sleep tight

Charn is a real place...sort of. It's from 'The Magician's Nephew' from The Chronicles of Narnia series

Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Xanrivash's KH fanfic universe, Charn, or Skillet's "One Day Too Late"


	19. Chibis Love Jellybeans

Has been awhile since I last added something here. Here's part 1 of a (?) parter

* * *

"Hey Ax, how was - what's that in your hand?"

The red head grinned and held up the box in his hand. "Jellybeans," he answered. "I picked 'em up on the mission I was on. They're pretty good too."

Demyx studied the box from his spot on the floor. "Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans?"

"Yeah." Axel sat on Demyx's bed, eating a black and white jellybean. "Oh gross, pepper flavored…anyway, I was starting to get a headache when I was out on this mission when I ran across a shop that sold these. Most of them taste pretty good, but then you get the few that taste weird and make you go 'what the hell?' when you taste them."

"That…sounds really strange," Demyx commented, going back to his sitar. Axel held out the box. "Want one?"

"No thanks. I think I'm gonna go to bed," Demyx said. "I'm tired after training with Lexaeus today."

"Suit yourself." Axel got off the bed and started to head towards the bathroom so he could go to his room. "I got a couple of boxes though if you want some later. Night."

"Night." And with that, Demyx vanished his sitar. For some reason, he felt a little strange after hearing that from Axel. And why hadn't the red head had something in his pocket to begin with if he wasn't feeling well? He usually carried some candy or crackers with him everywhere.

_Maybe I should keep an eye on him tonight?_ Demyx thought, stripping himself of his robe. Finally deciding against it, he got ready for bed, the feeling of something strange not quite leaving.

* * *

Demyx felt something batting at his cheek the next morning. Opening his eyes, he saw Sol sitting on his chest. "Why aren't you doing this to Axel?" Demyx asked. "You usually wake _him _up like this. Go bug him."

Solace simply stared, giving Demyx the full on blunt 'cat gaze'. Then, something clicked in the Nocturne's head; the cat didn't usually wake Demyx up unless something was wrong with Axel. And Connie was still snoozing on the sitar pillow mountain, so Sol wasn't in here to play.

Picking the tabby up and off his chest, the Nocturne set Sol back down on the floor and grabbed his hearing aids from the nightstand, inserting them into his ears as he got up from his bed to go to Axel's room. He was instead met with a closed bathroom door that led to Axel's side. He knocked a few times, only getting silence. "Axel, you up?"

Nothing.

Demyx opened the door, Sol shooting into the dark room ahead of him. "Axel?"

No response. Demyx went over to the light switch and flicked it on…and saw something that was so bizarre to him that he wasn't sure he was even seeing it.

A kid with flaming red hair and piercing green eyes sat on Axel's bed, in pajamas that were now too big for him, playing with a tiger plushie. "…Axel?"

The child looked up at the Melodious Nocturne and smiled. "Hi Demy!"

Demyx just stared at Axel for a moment. This situation seemed vaguely familiar to him.

Why was that?

Wait, didn't Axel once tell him that he had turned into a kid long ago? But…Demyx had gone to some weird-ass world that had transformed him. He couldn't remember Axel mentioning anything…

Demyx walked closer to the bed, examining the now child Axel as he continued to play with his tiger plush. The teardrop tattoos that usually were under his eyes were now gone, as was the fire-emblazoned tattoo from his shoulder that was now exposed, due to the fact his clothes didn't shrink with him.

"…Axel?"

The kid looked up at him. "What?"

"How old are you?"

Axel looked down at his fingers, looking like he was counting. Smiling, he held up his right hand, extending three fingers. "I'm fouw!" he exclaimed. Then he frowned a little. "Weww…awmost anyway."

_Dear Ganesh,_ Demyx thought. _Almost twenty years from what he's _supposed _to be. How'd this happen?_ "How do you spell your name?"

"A-X-E-L," the red head smiled. Of course he knew how to spell his name (despite his age), he made sure everyone he came into contact with knew how to spell it. "Got it memowized?"

Demyx laughed a little. Apparently Axel still knew his catchphrase too. "I committed it to memory," the Nocturne said, coming to the bed and sitting next to Axel. Solace jumped onto the bed, cautiously coming to his chibi-fied owner. The red head looked at Sol and his face brightened. "KITTY!" he practically yelled, trying to hug Solace. The tabby let him, though he didn't look happy about it as the small child hugged the cat.

_He doesn't know Solace either? _Demyx thought. "Do you know how to spell my name?"

"D-E-M-Y-X," Axel answered, discarding his plushie to the side and starting to play with Sol. "Don't you have it memowized?"

"Just wondering if you knew." Demyx pondered over what to do. Maybe he should take Axel to Vexen? What about Roxas? The Keyblade Master had done what he could to help when Demyx had been a kid, or so he heard. But Vexen was the one who would probably be of more use right now, especially since Axel had health problems.

Demyx picked up Axel, who looked surprised at the sudden movement and the fact that he was suddenly left in only a very over-sized t-shirt. "Wait!" he exclaimed.

"What is it?" the Nocturne asked.

"Wicky's gotta come too!" Axel said, reaching for the tiger plushie that still sat on the bed. "He's my fwiend!"

Demyx reached over and grabbed the stuffed animal, handing it to the child, who happily took it and snuggled it. "Why did you name it Ricky?" the sandy blonde asked, standing up from the bed. He knew that Axel's Other's little brother had been named Ricky, so maybe Axel remembered something?

The red head looked at the tiger plushie, then shrugged. "I 'unno," he said. "It sounded good." He looked back up at Demyx. "Whewe we goin'?"

"We're going to go see the antique," the Nocturne answered, wondering if Axel would pick up on that, since he usually called Vexen that behind his back.

Axel giggled. "I wanna bug Gwandpa Vexen!" he said. Demyx couldn't help but laugh at that, but at the same time, hoped Axel didn't call Vexen 'grandpa' when they got to his lab.

* * *

"Oh good Lord, _another _one of you has been reduced to a child?"

Demyx laughed nervously. "I guess so," he said, Axel smiling shyly as he cuddled against Demyx's shoulder, hugging his tiger stuffed animal. "Before you ask, I have no idea why he's like this. His cat woke me up and when I went to check on him, Axel was like this on his bed."

Vexen just gave him his icy stare. "If I am guessing right, which I usually do-" Demyx inwardly snorted at that "-then his mental age matches his physical appearance, he will still have his powers, does not have a heart or any trace of diabetes, and answers to his current name. But since he appears younger than what you did when this happened, I will guess that he does not know his own number."

Demyx went through the mental checklist that Vexen just gave him. "Well yeah, for about half that list. I'm gonna guess he still has his powers since he feels the same when it comes to body heat, his insulin pump is nowhere in sight so the diabetes thing is probably right too-"

"What's di-beetus?" Axel asked, clutching the tiger plushie.

"-and since you haven't said any numbers, I'm not sure," Demyx finished, ignoring Axel's question for the moment. "When I tried to ask him how old he was earlier, he held up three fingers and said he was four, or almost anyway."

"I can count to eight!" Axel volunteered happily.

"Scratch that, he knows up to his own number," Demyx quickly said.

Vexen looked over the child version of Axel, the red head looking back at him with wide emerald eyes as he started to suck his thumb, tiger plushie being hugged by the other arm. "I would like to conduct a basic physical, to see how the course of action should be if his diabetes is truly gone for the moment, perhaps even find the cause of why this happened."

Axel just stared at him for a minute. "What?"

Demyx held in a laugh. "Vexen's gonna check you over and make sure you're ok," he said.

"Oh. O-tay."

* * *

Getting a physical done by the iciest man in the Organization for an almost four year old proved to be quite interesting, seeing as to how Axel wouldn't shut up about how some of the equipment used looked like other stuff he had seen or bugging Vexen in general.

_At least we know now that his diabetes is gone for the moment, _Demyx thought. _It'll be easier for him as a kid without that particular rain cloud hanging over._

At the moment, Demyx was watching Axel play with Solace amongst the soft blue sheets of his own bed, Connie still snoozing on the mountain of pillows that Demyx kept in his room. Roxas was supposed to be coming by soon, seeing as to how the Nocturne had left a sticky note for him on his headboard while he was out on a recon mission for the day.

It seemed though that the day so far was taking a toll on the now three year old Axel, as Demyx watched the small red head yawn and rub an eye. "You getting tired?" Demyx asked.

Axel nodded, hugging Ricky. "I'm s'eepy." The Melodious Nocturne smiled, got up from his seat and gently picked up the child. "C'mon, you need a nap."

The red head merely nuzzled Demyx's neck, one arm draped over one of the sandy blonde's shoulders, the other holding the stuffed tiger loosely. When Demyx laid Axel on his own bed with his black sheets, the child was sound asleep, hugging Ricky close.

Demyx couldn't help but smile. "Sleep tight Axel," he said, turning off the light, then heading back to his own room. Only problem was he wasn't sure what to do. Both of them had eaten lunch after Vexen had given the three year old his physical, so Demyx wasn't hungry. They had also gone out to Twilight Town to get underwear for the child, seeing as to how Axel's clothes hadn't shrunk with him when he had changed.

Demyx thought about sitting down to play his sitar or any of his other instruments under the bed, but then realized that that might wake Axel up.

So he decided to pull out his book of staff paper and look over a piece he had been working on as of late. Sitting on his bed, he began to read the music and fix pieces that sounded better than they had before.

* * *

_I didn't get a chance to find out; at that point, I couldn't keep myself upright anymore, even supporting myself on the battered car. I just fell back into the snow, staring at the sky and wondering if anyone would come along and find us before we all died. At least I wasn't going to freeze to death, though bleeding to death was still a possibility, or going into diabetic shock, or dying of some obscure injury I didn't know I had._ _And if they didn't get help soon, for all I knew, Demyx and Roxas would never wake up. It was starting to sink in now - this wasn't just a bad dream. This was for real. And if we all might die before help found us - _

**…**

Axel woke up feeling uncomfortable. Sitting up, he looked around, wondering why he felt that way. Then he looked down at his lap, realizing why. Puffs of steam started to rise from the corners of his eyes as the little red head started to cry.

He couldn't figure out why he had wet the bed. Then again, he did remember having a scary dream about something bad that had happened. Problem was, he didn't know when or where it had taken place, and he had been a lot older. That wasn't possible, was it? He was only three years old.

Carefully getting out of bed, Axel went through the bathroom door that led to Demyx's room, still crying. Demyx looked up from his book of staff paper, seeing the weeping Axel. "What's the matter?" he asked gently, getting up from his seat on the bed and going to kneel in front of the red head.

Axel sniffled. "I sowwy Demmy," he said. "I was bad…din't mean to…"

The Nocturne didn't know what the child was talking about until he saw the dampness on the shirt that now hung past Axel's knees. "D-don't hit me p-pwease," Axel begged. "I d-d-din't mean to."

Demyx placed a hand on top of the other's head, his non-existent heart dropping when he felt Axel flinch. "It's okay," the sandy blonde said. "You had an accident. It happens every once in awhile. You weren't bad, okay? …but why did you think I would hit you?"

The red head sniffled. "Mommy an' Daddy sometimes do…they say I shouldn't wake 'em up just fow that…"

Demyx sighed. He remembered Axel once talking about how his parents had never really raised him, that hired help had always done so. Maybe at one point though, when he had been really young like he was now, Axel had thought he could go to parents for something such as this, like kids should be able to, but instead of love and reassurance that it would get better with time, he was criticized and hit.

So the Nocturne gathered his patience as he tried to keep in mind that Axel was three and didn't seem to realize that his parents were no longer among the living, much less in the World That Never Was. "If this ever happens, you can come get me, whether I'm awake or not, okay?" The little boy slowly nodded, Demyx smiling to him. "Alright, let's get you cleaned up with a bath and I'll take care of your sheets."

Axel just stood there, sniffling, as Demyx got up from his kneeling position and led him to the bathroom. Turning on the tap, he tested the water before getting back up to let it fill up. "I'm going to go get some spare clothes and take the sheets off your bed. I'll be right back, okay?"

The little boy nodded sadly, watching as Demyx went into the red head's room to do what he said he would. Axel looked at the water. Usually, he didn't like baths, but he felt so gross right now that he wasn't about to object.

Then he thought of something he wanted to ask. When Demyx re-entered the bathroom with clean clothes, Axel looked up at him. "Demmy, can I has some jaybeans?"

Demyx smiled, ruffling the little boy's hair. "Sure, but after we clean you up, 'k?" Axel nodded, grinning a little himself as Demyx started to get him ready for a bath.

* * *

**A/N:** Assuming that most (if not all) of you readers reading this are fans of Xanrivash, I'll make this clear now; this was kind of based on her story "A Little Problem", in which Demyx was turned into a chibi and a very old story she had scrapped. But after talking with her for awhile, I was allowed to write this.

Also, the bit that's supposed to be the 'scary dream' is a P.O.V. from another one of her stories called "Aftermath", in which our favorite trio get into a car accident


	20. Chibis Love Jellybeans: Older?

Part 2 of the (?) parter!

* * *

"So, are they yummy?"

Axel nodded, eating another jellybean. "I wuff jaybeans." Demyx smiled.

After he had gotten his bath, the small child had been put into clean clothes (meaning the new underwear and a shirt from Axel's closet), deciding to play again in Demyx's room. Connie had decided to join in this time as Demyx sat on the bed with Axel, who was eating a small handful of jellybeans from the box that he had picked up from his last mission. The Siamese stared at Axel as if it were the first time she had ever seen him, when it truthfully wasn't.

"How come she's stawin' at me?" Axel asked, finishing the last jellybean in his hand. Demyx shrugged, though he had a good idea. "I'm not sure," he said. "Cats do that sometimes."

Connie got up from her spot and walked up to Axel, coming nose-to-nose with the now three year old. The little boy just stared back as Connie looked at him with oversized blue eyes. Then she did the one thing Demyx could see coming from a mile away; the small Siamese stretched and perched her dainty paws on Axel's shoulder, starting to nibble his much shorter hair.

"Hey! How come she's eatin' my haiw?" Axel asked, a bit surprised. Demyx snickered. "It's a weird thing Connie does," he explained. "She likes to nibble or lick hair. Not sure why she does since she's done it ever since I got her."

Axel just sat for a minute, watching in his peripheral vision as the kitten nibbled at his hair. "…it feews weiwd," he finally said. Demyx was about to speak up when Connie lowered herself back down onto the bed, looking up at Axel. She mewed, as if commanding to be petted, which the small boy did. Carefully bringing a hand to the side of Connie's head, Axel began to gently pet her, smiling.

The Melodious Nocturne smiled when he heard the Siamese purring. "I think she likes you," he said. The chibi-fied Flurry of Dancing Flames grinned. "I wike hew too," he said, continuing to pet the cat.

A few minutes of silence passed, minus Connie's purring, as Axel petted her and Demyx watched him to make sure the little boy didn't pet too hard.

"Hey Demmy?"

"Yeah?"

"I had a scawy dweam."

"What about?"

"…I 'unno…"

Demyx looked at him, confused. "What do you mean you don't know?"

" 'Cuz I dunno when it happened," Axel answered. "It…wooked wike me, but I'm onwy fwee. The guy wooked wike he was…" he thought for a minute. "Owder than you."

A surprised look came to Demyx's face. "What else do you remember about it?"

Axel thought for a minute. "…thewe was a buncha snow," he finally said. "Wots of sky…an' a caw-"

"You mean car?" Demyx asked to clarify. He couldn't always tell what Axel was trying to say with the lisp he had acquired with reverting ages.

The red head nodded. "But it was beat up," he continued. "Someone was tawkin…sumfin' 'bout if he din't get hewlp, then you 'n Woxas wewre gonna go 'way."

The Nocturne's eyes widened. _Gods, somewhere in there, he must've remembered the car accident, _he thought. Did that mean…that in some depths of his mind, Axel could remember everything? There was a saying somewhere that said that 'dreams were the window to the soul' or something like that, so maybe Axel's dream tried to tell him that he wasn't really the way he currently was. "Is that why you had an accident when you were sleeping? You had that scary dream?" Demyx finally asked.

Axel slowly nodded, stopping in his petting of Connie. "It…weawwy scawed me," he said, not sounding so confident now. "The guy tawkin'…said that he fought he was gonna die…"

Demyx hugged Axel, bringing the small child onto his lap. Axel curled up against Demyx, one hand gripping his Organization cloak as he started to cry.

_Poor Axel. I wonder if he had this kind of problem with me when I changed into a kid,_ the Nocturne thought, beginning to rock the child in his arms a little to calm him down. _Then again, if it was me who changed, it probably wasn't crying over memory dreams._

For awhile, the two just sat there, Axel sniffling and Demyx comforting the child as best as he could

**…**

"Demyx?"

The Melodious Nocturne looked up to see Roxas, closing the bedroom door as he stared at Axel. "Is that…?"

"Yeah, that's Axel," Demyx answered, his gaze going from the teenage blonde back to the now sleeping red head on his lap. "And before you ask, I don't know what happened. Sol woke me up and I found him like this."

Roxas was about to talk again when they both saw Axel start to squirm. Demyx sighed, rubbing the small child's back in order to calm him down. "I hope he's not having another nightmare."

"Why, what are they about?" the Key of Destiny asked.

The Nocturne carefully stood up from his bed, picking up the discarded Ricky as he did. "Well…"__

* * *

If there are any gods who look after Nobodies, forgive me; I think I'm gonna break.

_Axel had never been so low in his life, including his previous life as a Somebody; even in the execution chamber he'd at least been allowed some dignity, and he had to admit it had gone pretty painlessly, considering. Now, he was trapped in a little cage secured to the partially-ruined dock, chained hand and foot, submerged up to his neck, for hours on end - he had no way of knowing how long. Only the fact that the sun was just now setting for the first time convinced him he hadn't been there for days already. He was starving, thirsty as hell - ironic, since he was surrounded by water - his aching head made him feel sick and dizzy whenever he moved, and the rest of him was so cold and stiff he could barely move anyway, even if he wasn't so tightly restrained. He couldn't even raise his head to look at the sky without the collar around his neck choking him. And those damn seagulls kept circling around and screeching, like they were a gang of vultures waiting for him to die. He'd developed a burning hatred for seagulls…_

…_By now, Axel was too cold and numb to care how stiff and sore he was. He barely even cared about how cold and numb he was. He was all alone in a small, dark, watery, foggy world, and all he cared about was when he could get out of it. Rescue and death seemed equally appealing at this point. _

_He spared a thought out of the unending misery for his friends. __**Sorry, Demyx, I should have listened to you...Roxas, if you don't get here soon, don't come at all, because there won't be anyone to rescue...if I don't see either of you again, sorry for being such a dumbass...I want this over with.**_

**…**

Axel's eyes snapped open, puffs of steam that acted as tears already there.

He couldn't figure out where this last dream was, much less remember much of it. All he knew was that there was a lot of water everywhere, the person in it (which he had a suspicion was the older version of himself he had seen in his previous dream) was in a world of pain, and for some reason, he was hoping that Roxas would get there soon.

Still crying, Axel hugged his tiger plushie. He was starting to get really scared. This was the second dream that showed him an older, red headed male that looked like him, but it couldn't be…could it? He wasn't even four yet.

Suddenly, a rather familiar sensation made its presence known in the lower regions of Axel's body. Quickly (and carefully) getting out of bed and leaving his plushie behind, the red head opened the door to the bathroom, needing to relieve himself. However, he heard voices on the other side of the door that led to Demyx's room.

"-he really doesn't remember anything?"

"…well, I wouldn't say that necessarily. Remember I told you that he had that nightmare earlier about when he woke up after that car accident? I don't know if that's his mind trying to unconsciously say that he's closer to twenty-four than four or what-"

Forgetting his need to pee, Axel listened closer to the conversation from the other side.

"-but I think that whatever made him change hasn't left yet."

Silence. "What's that mean Demyx?"

"I remember you guys told me that after I came back from that world that changed me to a kid that I had something like 'it was put together weird' or something like that. In my case, it was an enchantment that was only supposed to last ten minutes. But Vexen can't find anything strange about it and I'm not picking anything up either…maybe Naminé could figure something out if we took him to her?"

"I dunno…we tried that when you were changed and it didn't work. She couldn't figure out why you didn't remember anything; actually, I think her theory was that you might've been too young to remember."

Axel didn't know who this Naminé was, but he was suddenly remembering the fact that he _really _needed to go to the bathroom. He went over to the toilet, then realize he couldn't _reach _anything, making everything more complicated in the child's head. The red head was about to go get Demyx when he felt something wet soaking his feet. He looked down, watching as a puddle formed on the floor…then started to cry, realizing what had just occurred.

"I was bad 'gin…" Axel sniffled to himself, eyes closed as the tears that came out as puffs of steam emerged.

"You were not bad."

Axel looked up to see Demyx and behind him, Roxas. Demyx kneeled down to his level, placing a hand on the chibi's head as he had earlier. "When this happens, you aren't being bad," the Nocturne said softly. "It happens to everyone when they're a kid."

The red headed child sniffled. "B-but I'm opposted to be oulder," he protested. He felt Demyx tense a little and saw Roxas' eyes widen when they heard that.

"…you heard us, didn't you?" Demyx asked in his soft voice, trying not to scare Axel. When the red headed child nodded, the other two sighed. "It's true that you're not really this age Ax," Demyx started. "But right now you are. It's okay." Then he smiled. "Besides, it's easy clean up."

Axel was confused by this until he saw the puddle that had formerly been on the floor float up and into the toilet. Amazed look on his face, the red head looked at Demyx. "How'd you do that?" he asked.

Roxas had a confused/shocked look on his face about that reaction from Axel as Demyx smiled. "I control water, remember?" he asked. "Speaking of water, you need another bath." Demyx turned to look at the teenager behind him. "Can you get us some dinner when you go while I clean him up?"


	21. Chibis Love Jellybeans: More Dreams

Part 3 of a ? parter!

* * *

_"Fine. Take your fucking socks back. Take all the fucking socks you want in recompense." Demyx jerked away from him and buried his face in his book. "You can even fucking burn them all if you want."_

_"Great." Axel started rummaging through the sock drawer, finding a total of six pairs of his socks. "Now quit stealing my socks, okay?"_

_"Ooh, I dunno, Axy," Demyx said in a retarded-sounding voice. "I'm just dumbass Demyx, I can't understand simple concepts like that. Unless, of course, you beat 'em into me," he added in a normal voice, lowering his book to glare at Axel. His face was still mottled green and yellow from old bruises._

_"..." How was Axel supposed to respond to that? Eventually, he took one pair of socks and lightly batted Demyx over the head with it a few times. "Don't. Steal. My. Socks. Have I beaten it into you yet?"_

_Demyx just stared at him. "...Some days, I can't decide if you're priceless or worthless."_

_Axel shrugged. "Hey, I'm worth at least a few pair of socks..."_

_"That's another thing. Your socks are bought and paid for out of the general funds, but the rest of us have to pay for our own out of pocket..."_

**…**

Demyx watched the three year old as he was starting to wake up.

The Nocturne had woken up when he felt the small body next to him begin to squirm slightly. When he looked at the small red head, he had first wondered if the child was having another nightmare, but noticed that he wasn't looking scared so maybe he wasn't.

He was about to find out though.

Axel opened his eyes, blinking a few times. After a moment, he looked up to see his sandy haired friend. "Demmy? How come I'm in youw bed?" the little red head asked, hugging his plushie.

Demyx smiled a little. "You fell asleep in here last night while I was playing my sitar," he explained. "I didn't really want to wake you up just to carry you twenty feet, so I let you sleep here instead." He petted the three year old's hair as Axel wiped away the sleep particles from his eyes. "Did you have another dream?"

Axel nodded. "But…this one wasn't scawy," he said. "It was weiwd…sumfin' 'bout socks…an' that guy asked you not to steaw 'em…"

"Socks?" Demyx asked. He vaguely remembered doing Axel's laundry once with his shortly after Axel had been diagnosed with diabetes. "…was there anything else weird about the dream?"

The red head scrunched up his face, as if he were trying to remember. "…kinda," he eventually answered. "Youw face had gween an' yew wow spots."

Shit.

If there was one thing that Demyx hadn't wanted Axel to remember, it would've been anytime involving a beating from the red head in the past. _How am I supposed to explain that one? 'Oh yeah, that was right after we found out you had diabetes and you got mad at me, so I got beaten up.' He would take that SO well._

"Demmy?"

The sandy blonde was pulled from his thoughts when he heard Axel. "What is it?"

"How come you had spots?"

"I got beat up." There, that wasn't a total lie. Demyx just wasn't going to tell a three year old that he had done it when he was closer to his twenties.

"Why?"

Demyx sighed, smiling a little at the curious green eyes that stared at him. "It's not important," he reassured Axel, patting his head. "It's in the past. No use talking about it now."

"…Demmy?"

"Yeah?"

"I gotta go potty."

Demyx laughed a little. "Alright, well you know where it is," he said, gesturing in the direction of the bathroom. "I put a footstool in there so you could use it if you needed too." In reality, he had grabbed the one that Axel usually kept in his room from the days when he hung stuff up on the walls of his bedroom but couldn't quite reach (despite his height), and placed it in the bathroom while the red head was sleeping the night before. "Just tell me when you need help washing your hands."

Axel nodded, then jumped off the bed and headed to the bathroom, leaving Ricky behind on the bed. Demyx smiled when the door slammed shut, slightly amused. He sat back and let his mind wander while he waited for Axel.

_How can I find out how he changed into a little kid in the first place? …let's see…the day he came back, he said he had been starting to get a headache…and had been somewhere where they sold jellybeans…and he bought a few boxes of those 'every flavor beans'-_

That's when it hit him. _The jellybeans! He's been eating them since he got home! _Demyx smacked himself._ Gods, it's so obvious! Why didn't I think of it before? I guess now all I have to do is keep him from eating them for the next day or so and see if that…whatever just needs to get out of his system or if we need other help._

* * *

"Why can't I has any jaybeans Demmy?"

Demyx sighed for the millionth time. "Because you've been eating 'em a lot, and you don't need anymore," he said. "Besides, it's bedtime."

Axel looked like he was about to cry. "But I not s'eepy," he said, a yawn breaking out as soon as those words came out. Demyx smiled. "I think someone's lying."

The little red head just grinned a little, hugging his tiger plushie. Picking up Axel, Demyx took him back to his own room, laid him down on his bed, and covered him up. "Can I has some jaybeans tomowwow Demmy?"

"…we'll see." Demyx turned off the light. "Good night Axel."

A yawn. "Night-night Demmy."

Leaving the door from Axel's room to the bathroom slightly ajar with the light on, Demyx went back to his own room and started changing. _Guess I might as well go to bed. Taking care of a three year old Axel is tougher than it looks._ After changing from his Organization attire to a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt that said 'If You Want Your Opinion, I'll Beat It Out Of You!', the Nocturne slipped under the covers of his bed, hoping that tomorrow would bring some results.

**…**

"Demmy?"

No response.

"…Demmy?"

"…Murf…"

Axel didn't try to bother anymore and just crawled under the covers of Demyx's bed, cuddling with both the Nocturne and Ricky the tiger plush while trying to go to sleep. Demyx however, had no idea what had just happened as he felt the small being moving. He opened his eyes and saw chibi Axel in the bed next to him, hugging Ricky. "What are you doing out of bed? Did you get scared?"

Axel shook his head. "…I got wonewy. Can I s'eep here?"

"Well…alright. But just for tonight," Demyx said, petting Axel's hair. "Get to sleep now, ok? It's late."

" 'K." Axel cuddled with Demyx, trying to get comfortable. "Hey Demmy?"

"Yeah?"

"I got wonewy 'cuz I had anudder dweam."

Demyx sat up a little, looking down at Axel. "What was this one about?" he asked.

The chibi smiled. "That guy, you, an' Woxas were in here. You were sad 'bout sumfin', so the guy got this weird lookin' stuff and some cookies. Then you were happy."

Demyx smiled. "I remember that. That was Valentine's Day last year…I was sad because I was lonely myself. After some tea and cookies, I started feeling better enough to even play my sitar again." When he heard Axel yawn again, Demyx laid back down. "Go to sleep. You're not alone anymore."

"M'kay." With that, Axel curled up against Demyx, falling asleep.


	22. Chibis Love Jellybeans: Finale

Demyx woke up the next morning with a bit more of a surprise than he would've wanted.

He felt an arm wrapped around his waist, which scared him almost as soon as he was conscious. The next bit that scared him was the fact that whoever was with him was spooning him. The last part that terrified Demyx more than the other things was the feeling of something poking at the small of his back.

Suddenly, he heard a quiet, sleepy moan emit from whoever was behind him. Whoever it was, they were having a good dream. And it was at that moment that Demyx's brain came out of its stupor to remember that Axel had climbed into bed the night before…but as a kid. Quickly scrambling out of bed, Demyx looked to see if Axel was there.

Yup, Axel was still there. But no longer was he a three year old; it seemed that sometime during the course of the night, Axel had changed back into his twenty-three year old self. And had somehow lost his underwear that he had been wearing the night before, as Demyx could see from the blanket that was still covering undesired parts, but just barely.

_Guess it was the jellybeans he was eating that made him a kid,_ Demyx thought. Axel curled up a little into the bed, blankets covering him a little more. _Great, now I'm definitely going to have to wash the sheets. _

With that thought, Demyx went to Axel's room to grab a pair of pants (or at least boxers) so that when the red head did wake up, Demyx wouldn't have to get an eyeful of what Axel called his 'lucky charm'. Technically, he knew what Ax already looked like and had caught him a few times in the act of masturbating (on accident of course; the first time, Demyx had been worried because of the strange sounds from Axel's room and went to investigate). That didn't mean Demyx wanted to see his best friend more than he had too.

* * *

_The mission was made of pure boring. Going over to the deep jungle where Tarzan resided would've been more fun than this, walking down the square that was for some reason or another known as 'Diagon Alley'._

_He was supposed to be looking for some kind of artifact in Knockturn Alley at some store that felt like a mix between a junk shop and a witch's giant closet, but when Axel hadn't found the specified item there, he decided to go exploring. Which had led him to Diagon Alley._

_Truthfully, this part of the area was much more fun appearing than the previous, seeing that it was at least colorful. But he was starting to get irritated with the people there…or more accurately, the bumping into people that seemed to be happening. But Axel wasn't feeling so hot either, what with a headache starting to form._

_Reaching into his pockets, he started looking for the box of jellybeans that he usually kept in case of sugar level problems. Then he came to a realization when his pockets turned up empty; he had finished the last box a few missions ago and hadn't replaced it yet._

Dammit, now what am I supposed to do?_ the red head thought. _

_"Oy, Fred! C' mere and help!"_

_Axel looked up to see a pair of red-headed twins, who looked like they were somewhere between seventeen and nineteen, setting up a few boxes on a rather large table outside of what appeared to be a joke shop. "C'mon, the Extendable Ears still need to be put up!"_

_The other twin, who Axel guess was Fred, pulled out a stick and gave it a wave, a box opening up and-_

_Wait, a stick? That had to have been a wand, Axel finally concluded. Though he was no stranger to magic due to traveling to many worlds since joining the Organization, he hadn't seen many of those wizards and witches actually use wands-_

_"Want to take a look? We're still setting up, but go ahead and look around!"_

_One of the red heads had popped up in front of Axel when he had spaced out. "Sorry, I'm just trying to figure out where I can get something sugary," he said. "I-"_

_"Sweet? You should've said so!" the other one exclaimed, digging through a box, then bringing him something. "Try these. With purchases today from Weasley's Joke Shop, we're giving away boxes of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans! Even if you end up spending just one Galleon, Sickle, or Knut, you'll get a box!"_

_"Sorry, I don't have any of that kind of money," Axel apologized, though he was in desperate need of something sweet. "I'm not exactly from around here-"_

_"What have ya got?"_

_That was an unusual question. But Axel dug into an inside pocket of his cloak and pulled out a few munny. "This is all I have-"_

_"Wicked," the twins chorused, looking at the currency in Axel's hand._

_"Sorry?"_

_They looked at him, grins on their faces. "Don't care where it's from-"_

_"-but it'll get you a few boxes of the Bertie Bott's if you want them-"_

_"-and since you're not from around here, we'll tell you that they're basically jellybeans. Watch out for some of the strange flavors you'll get though…"_

**…**

Axel groaned as he started to wake up.

He really didn't feel like getting up this morning. Being wrapped up in blankets was always one of the best feelings he had in the morning, especially when the blankets were nice and soft.

Blinking his eyes open, he realized that he was in a pile of blue, aqua, and green blankets in a blue room. _What the-? What the hell am I doing in Demyx's room?_ he thought, stretching his arms as he was still in the process of waking up. _Weird. I never thought I'd end up here, especially when I can't remember anything…why's it so draft - HOLY SHIT, I'M IN DEMYX'S BED WITH NO PANTS! …and a boner…great…what the fuck happened last night?_

Bolting upright, Axel tried to gather up his thoughts about why he would be in Demyx's bed with nothing on in the nether regions, and with a rather large problem staring him in the face. But…he couldn't remember anything except going to bed after eating some jellybeans when he got back from that mission in Diagon Alley.

_Was there something else in those things that I didn't know about? Did Demyx and I do anything? _He looked over himself to see if there was any evidence, but he was wearing an old Great Balls of Fire t-shirt, so if there was anything on the top half of his body to indicate events, then he couldn't see it. Axel started to take off his shirt-

"Whoa there, don't need to see anymore than I already have."

Axel stopped, quickly covering himself up, looking towards the doorway to the bathroom to see Demyx. "What are you talking...oh...fuck…" he paused, feeling awkward. "Why am I in your bed? Did we do something that I'm not aware of?"

Demyx couldn't help but smile. "Guess you don't remember the last few days," he finally said, tossing a pair of sweatpants at Axel.

"Why, what happened?"

"…maybe you should take a shower first. A cold one."

* * *

"Hey Fred?" one asked the other as he was counting out the Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts the shop had made that day.

"Yeah George?" the other asked back as he locked the shop door, ready for the day to be done with.

"Remember that one bloke who gave us that 'munny'?"

The one called Fred raised an eyebrow. "What about it?"

"We didn't give him those joke jellybeans, did we?"

Fred's eyebrows shot up. "Did you look at what we were giving him?"

"…bloody hell…"

"…we're going to have a lot of pissed customers…"


	23. Card Games NOT on Motorcycles!

A special story to dedicate a few things. What they are? You'll find out after reading this story!

Setting: None really

* * *

It was another rather boring night in The Castle That Never Was, Xanrivash soon discovered as she roamed the halls. The other members that she did like were either busy or on missions. That or she couldn't find them-

"DAMN IT! That's five rounds!"

"Calm down Xigbar. You only lost fifty money this time."

"…shut up Luxord."

This was the scene that greeted Xanrivash as she came into the Rec Room That Shall Remain Nameless. Apparently, Luxord, Xigbar, Lexaeus, and Larxene had gathered at the only table in the room and were playing cards. What game specifically, she didn't know.

Larxene gathered the cards up and started shuffling the deck. "Who's turn is it in this bunch of clowns to pick the game?" she asked. Xanrivash just watched for a moment as they began to bicker about who should pick.

It was about that time that Luxord noticed the Nightshade Stalker and smiled. "Hello Xanrivash!" he greeted, waving a little. "Care to play cards with us?"

"…what are you playing?" she asked, coming over to Luxord.

"Well, we've been playing Texas Hold'em, Omaha, Seven Card Stud, Five Card Draw, and Caribbean Stud Poker," Xigbar answered. "We're deciding right now on what variation we wanna play now."

Xanrivash thought for a moment. "…if you play Tessas Hold'em, may I join?"

"Go ahead," Larxene said, motioning the empty seat between herself and Luxord. "But we think Luxord's been cheating again-"

"Au contraire, I never cheat," Luxord interjected as the Nightshade Stalker took a seat. "I'm just lucky. It is part of my title after all."

"Gambler of Fate? How is luck involved?" Larxene asked as she dealt the cards.

"Gambling in and of itself is nothing but luck," Luxord pointed out. "In a bet there is a fool and a thief; I just happen to be the thief in this group."

The Savage Nymph rolled her eyes as she finished dealing the cards. "Alright, Texas Hold'em, aces going both ways."

So the bets were put in and the game began.

**…**

"WHAT THE HELL? First I lose to Luxord, now to Xanrivash?"

Lexaeus couldn't help but chuckle at Xigbar's outburst. Sure, he had lost too, but he usually didn't play cards with the others, so it was entertaining to watch the older superior on the verge of a crisis. Then again, the only reason the Freeshooter was having this crisis in the first place was because he had lost over five hundred munny in the chain of card games.

Luxord grinned. "Seems we've got another card shark in the castle that we never even knew about," he said, taking up the cards as the pot was shoved towards Xanrivash. And he had to admit, she was good. Hell, even he had lost to her! That was a first since Luxord _never _lost to anyone.

Well, until now anyway.

Xigbar shoved himself away from the table. "I'm backing out," he said as he stood up. "There no way I'm losing anymore munny." With that, he walked out.

Luxord turned to Lexaeus. "How about yourself?"

The Silent Hero shook his head. "Regretfully, I cannot. I have a mission in the morning and should have retired awhile ago." So Lexaeus left the room via portal.

"Hell no," was Larxene's answer as she got up from the table. "I've lost enough money." But she didn't go very far, just over to the couch as she turned on the TV and began to watch whatever was in the DVD player.

Luxord finally looked at Xanrivash. "Well, would you like to play anything else? We don't have to play for munny, seeing as it's just the two of us."

The Nightshade Stalker thought for a minute. "…Gin Rummy?"

**…**

Luxord couldn't believe it.

Out of seven games of Gin Rummy, he had only won two rounds. "How in the name of Kingdom Hearts are you winning this many rounds?"

Xanrivash shrugged. "My family and fellow mercenaries used to play," she answered.

There was something the Gambler of Fate hadn't known. "You were a mercenary?"

She nodded. "My job was never completed though. My target was killed before I got to him."

Luxord grew curious. "…want to exchange stories on how we lost our hearts?" he asked, dealing another game.

Xanrivash smiled. "You first."

* * *

Alright, dedicating several things!

1) I realized the other day that this collection of short stories is now 1 year old!

2) These stories wouldn't exist without a certain writer that we should all know by now; the infamous Xanrivash. This is a story dedicated to her :D

3) ...I like the thought of Lux/Xani day than Lux/Xion. That's just disgusting


	24. That One New Year's, part 1

Wow. This one was meant to come out close to Christmas, then New Year's, _then_ I was forced into the Countryside That Never Was (as well as another side trip) **then my computer got a virus!**

So here's a very late part of a story in this series of one-shots

Setting: New Year's Eve, just after Fori joins the Organization

* * *

"Let's play a game of 'I Never'."

It was that phrase that got a small group started on a drinking binge. It was New Year's Eve (even in The World That Never Was) and Xigbar, assisted by Luxord, had brought back several kegs, as well as cases of every hard drink they could think of so that they could start any drinking game.

"Why 'I Never'?" asked Axel, joining Xigbar and Luxord at one of the card tables kept out in the Rec Room.

Luxord chuckled. "We all come from different places, so why not take an opportunity to celebrate another year of catching Heartless, another year closer to going back to who we were, and getting to know one another for the future?"

"Sounds sort of stupid from my point of view," Larxene said, coming to the table as well. "Learning about this clown college? Why would I want to do that?"

"…good blackmail?" Xigbar suggested.

The Savage Nymph sat.

So the game commenced when the group consisted of Axel, Larxene, Luxord, Xigbar, and surprisingly, Xanrivash and Lexaeus. It started off with the basic "I Never's"; not losing one's heart in a traditional way of dying, their first whatevers, etc., proceeding sometime later into the more complex ones.

Then came one of the hardest, biggest ones from Luxord.

"I've never had dream sex with any of the Organization members."

Larxene, Xigbar, and Axel all took a drink. At this, Luxord got interested. "Care to share?" he asked.

Xigbar snorted. "Why would we do that? We might get smashed with one of these bottles, then gutted by a certain someone."

Axel just laughed nervously at that. Luxord took notice, but said nothing. "Why not Xigbar?" the gambler asked. "You're amongst friends."

The Freeshooter sighed. "If I really gotta say…I had dream sex…" He turned a little pink as his sentence tried to come out. "…with both Larx and Xanrivash."

Xanrivash looked at him with interest while Larxene snorted. "Why would I jump your old bag of bones again?" the Nymph asked. Xigbar hunched over, clearly embarrassed. "Just a dream," he told her. "Not like we'd ever do that in real life."

"What about you Larxene?" Luxord asked. "Anyone outrageous?"

The woman in question snorted. "Me having sex, dream or real, with anyone here is outrageous. But if I really have to say, I've had dream sex with Fori, Marly, Axel, and Zexion."

"So you're more like the dream sex slut of all of us," Axel said jokingly. Larxene glared at him with a look that could've electrocuted him on the spot. "Alright then smart ass, who've you had dream sex with?"

Axel could feel his face flooding with heat. "Uhm…I'd…rather not say."

"C'mon, me and Larx admitted! You have to tell us!" Xigbar interjected. Axel gulped. While he had a few involving the Savage Nymph, they were nowhere _near _as pleasing to wake up to when he had dreamed of someone else.

"I…I'm gonna go to bed now," he said, suddenly feeling sleepy. He rose from his chair, only to start stumbling as he walked away. And it took him a few minutes to remember to make a portal…or at least, to remember that he could.

But as his vision grew blurry, he was wondering why he was feeling like this. He wasn't plastered as he had been in the past, but he didn't get like this either when he was only slightly tipsy.

What the hell was wrong with him?

* * *

…_Demyx was all but silent before, during and after, but it was completely unlike any other time before - except, for the first time, Axel felt like he was with the Demyx he'd known for years. Gone was the anger and violence and aggression, replaced with a caring, gentle touch that seemed more dedicated to Axel's pleasure than Demyx's own. In sharp contrast to their earlier quick-and-dirty sessions, Demyx seemed to have all the time in the worlds to explore Axel's body thoroughly now, both of them abandoning their clothing piece by piece as he found out exactly what pleased Axel best. _

_And by the time Demyx finally entered him...it had already gone beyond sex into honest-to-God lovemaking. Demyx had even stayed with him afterward, instead of getting dressed and running off like he usually did, which led directly to Axel musing on the puzzle that was Demyx while Demyx toyed with his hair._

_"...I swear, every time we do this, you just become that much more of a puzzle to me," Axel murmured, as Demyx toyed idly with his hair. "Or...maybe I just learn more about you."_

_Realizing that, the red head began to drift off, the sandy blonde in bed with him and still playing with his hair. Demyx smiled a little, watching as the other tried to sleep. "Axel…"_

_The other roused enough to grin at Demyx. "Hm?"_

_The Nocturne nuzzled him. "Axel, you need to wake up."_

"…_huh?"_

"_C'mon, wake up Axel."_

* * *

"…el…Axel…"

Said red head began to rouse from whatever kind of sleep he had just had. Letting his vision adjust as he opened his eyes, Axel could hear someone's voice. "Thank the Gods…for awhile there, I thought you weren't going to wake up."

It took a minute, but Axel recognized the voice. "Demyx?" His vision finally focused enough to make out the mull-hawked roommate. "…what the hell happened?"

"First, what do you remember happening?" Demyx asked, a bit of caution in his voice.

Axel tried to think through the cloudy haze. "Ugh…uhm…New Year's Eve…Xigbar and Luxord got a bunch of alcohol…and some of us were playing 'I Never'. Other than that, not much."

"You sure that's all?"

"…well, I tried to leave, but I felt really weird. I couldn't make a portal when I remembered that I could make one in the first place…and I knew I wasn't really drunk because I hadn't had much-" Then he noticed something odd about the room. It was too white. "Why the hell am I in the hospital wing?"

Demyx seemed to find the invisible patterns of the sheets very interesting as that question was asked. "…well…the other night when you guys were playing that game, Larxene managed to drug whatever drink you had…"

"…what?" Axel deadpanned. _Why the Hell would Larxene do that?_

"Apparently, it was a joke aimed for Xanrivash-"

"With what? Poison and shit like that doesn't work on Xan," Axel snapped.

"-and now Larxene knows that," Demyx continued. "She apparently thought doping her with a ton of parecin would block whatever powers Xanrivash has and make her…I dunno, tipsy or something."

Axel thought for a second, rolling over onto his side to face Demyx without having to turn his head. "…how did you find out all this again?"

Demyx grinned. "Zexion interrogated Larxene."

"Ah."

The Nocturne frowned however. "But…you scared me. Real bad."

"Why?" Then Axel realized that he had no idea how much time had passed since the game. "How-?"

"It's been almost two weeks."

"TWO WEEKS?" Axel shot up, only to make himself dizzy and fall forward, Demyx catching him. "…remind me not to do that again."

"Noted," Demyx said, helping him lay back down. "Yeah, it's been that long, Roxas is still gone on that mission with Xaldin and Luxord, and we're not sure why it took so long for you to wake up other than a theory that Vexen and Zexion came up with."

Axel gave him a look. "Which is…?"

"Well, parecin takes away your powers, right?" When Axel nodded, Demyx continued. "On a normal dosage that Vexen would give any one of us, it would just take whatever powers we control away, but we would still be in our right minds. In your case, it also takes away the fact that you have a higher body temperature and you get cold easier."

"That can't be the whole thing."

"It's not," Demyx said. "But those are the facts. The theory part is that when Larxene got you doped up with however much of it, it completely screwed you up. There's more to it, but I can't think of it."

Axel remained silent, thinking about what Demyx had just said…then somehow, his thoughts went back to the dream he had just a bit ago.

"Ax? You ok? Your face is red."

The red head could almost swear he felt his face heat up even more at that, an image of Demyx above him, half naked with a sultry look, asking that same question. "I'm fine," he managed to say. "So what happened while I was out?"

Demyx stared at him as if Axel had just grown two heads, but continued anyway. "Let's see…since Larxene almost killed you with a parecin overdose, Xemnas got her on a humongous list of missions as well as bathroom cleaning duty in everyone's bathrooms for the next three months…Roxas is still gone, so he doesn't know what's been going on around here…"

The Nocturne continued, but Axel wasn't really listening. He couldn't get the images of the previous dream out of his head, as well as a fantasy that was now beginning to crawl into his thoughts of him and Demyx in the process of-

"Axel?"

The red head quickly shook his head to clear his mind of _those _kinds of thoughts. "What?"

"…I dunno where the hell your brain went, but I just told you that I have to go talk to Vexen."

Axel huffed, hating the fact that the literal (and figurative) Iceman of the Organization was needed. "…fine."

After Demyx had walked out, Axel noticed something that shouldn't have been there…and wondered if his sandy haired friend had just made an excuse and left, since Axel was now sticking straight up.

"…shit…"

* * *

Next part soon to come. And rating will probably have to go up now...


	25. That One New Year's, part 2

**SMUT.**

* * *

"_Little lower, little - okay, that's perfect. Just hold that position…"_

_Axel tried to look at the other from his strange placing. "You know, Demyx, this is a little...complicated."_

_Demyx gave a slightly 'thoughtful, yet full of perverted thoughts' look. "I know, but I'll be able to have at least one hand free. Since you won't -"_

_"Oh. I see." Axel rolled his eyes. "You know, though, compared to how you usually are, you're talking a lot right now." _

_Coating his fingers, Demyx thought of a way to answer that. "Well...you know...given the situation...and...well…" The sandy blonde went silent for a moment, beginning to probe with his fingers. "…okay, how does this feel?"_

_Axel moaned, nearly collapsing at the feeling of sudden invasion. "Ah...oh...Jesus...what the fuck is that?"_

_"Just some new lube I picked up at the drugstore. Claimed to be some warming sensation stuff…" Axel could just hear the smirk that was most likely on Demyx's face. "Oh...damn...it delivers. I like." He felt the intruding fingers working more and moaned. "Oh - oh, man, that feels good."_

"_Good. Glad you like it." Demyx smiled, continuing to stretch Axel was doing his best not to writhe in pleasure at the feeling. "Whoo - I'm just wondering how it's gonna feel when you've got your cock in there instead of just your fingers. Whew."_

_Demyx chuckled. "You ready to find out?"_

_Did Demyx _really_ just ask that question? "Goddamn - Demyx, I'm so hard I could probably pound in a nail." Axel could feel the intruding fingers vanishing, suddenly feeling strange without something there. "Heh. Fortunately, you won't have to…" Demyx said, placing a hand on one of the red head's hips, positing himself…_

* * *

Axel started to wake up when he felt a sudden draft roll across his stomach. Opening his eyes, he looked to see why that was, only to find that his sleep shirt had ridden up sometime during the night, exposing his stomach. The red head just pulled the covers up, rolling over onto his stomach, only to be stopped when he felt something in the nether region hurting when he turned. "What the-?" Axel looked down, then suddenly remembered the dream from before.

_This has seriously got to stop. I can't keep dreaming about Demyx that way, he's like a little brother! So why the hell are these dreams coming at me?_

…_well, at least it's not that bad right now. It's only at half-mast, _Axel thought, flopping his head back onto the pillow, still exhausted. Looking at his alarm, he groaned._ It's seriously too freaking early for this shit…_

Axel closed his eyes and drifted off…

* * *

_"Damn, you were right when you said you were hornier than usual," Axel panted, as Demyx pinned his arms down and started licking at his bare chest. "I...think this kinda settles that you're not straight."_

_Demyx stopped what he was doing, and blinked down at Axel as if he hadn't been speaking English, then laughed. "Well, there's one thing I'd been wondering settled," he said, nuzzling Axel's chest. "I wonder why I never figured it out sooner..."_

_"Probably because you knew damn well you were straight and wouldn't even look at another guy?"_

_"I meant that as a rhetorical question."_

_"My bad. Let's get back to getting it on." Axel reached down carefully to undo his fly - a bit trickier than usual, since Demyx was still pinning his arms down, but given the situation, he welcomed the challenge - and pull out his 'little friend'. "You can do anything with that you want," he told Demyx, who was already looking at it with a definite gleam in his eye. "Short of, you know, cutting it off."_

_"Cut it - dude, what the hell. Why would I..." Demyx shook his head over that particular line for a second, then just stopped, looking at Axel blankly. "Sorry," he eventually offered. "My brain just woke up and asked 'dude, what the hell are you doing having sex with your best male friend?'"_

_"...Okay..." Axel said, suddenly worried that Demyx was about to change his mind and call it off, which was the last thing he wanted even if Demyx was his best friend. "What does the rest of you think?"_

_"...Well, my cock is telling my brain to shut the hell up so it can get the action it was promised. And for all I used to brag about which head I did all my thinking with...I think the other one's got the better idea right now." With that, Demyx leaned over and started sucking on Axel's cock, pulling his own out so he could stroke it at the same time…_

* * *

Demyx woke up suddenly.

It wasn't like he heard something that woke him up, he just…woke up. And didn't feel particularly tired, despite it being earlier than his usual wake up time. Grabbing his hearing aids off the bedside table, Demyx put them into his ears and yawned.

_Wait…what's that weird sound? _the sandy blonde thought, noting some weird noise that was coming from somewhere. Getting up, he went to the bathroom door and listened. It was a little louder, but whatever the sound was, it wasn't coming from inside.

Opening the bathroom door, Demyx listened closer.

It sounded like…panting?

Demyx knocked on the door that led to Axel's bedroom from the bathroom. "Axel? You-"

* * *

"_-have one delicious penis. Delicious and huge - I bet it could last forever."_

_Demyx chuckled softly and moved a little closer, close enough for Axel to take as much of him in his mouth as could fit, though he had to do some maneuvering to get one hand free to pump the base while still pumping himself with the other. "Hot damn, that big mouth of yours is awful...tight all of a sudden," Demyx panted, burying his hands in Axel's hair and tugging a little; Axel could feel his hot breath on the back of his neck. "Just as soon have you down there...as any hot chick..." Axel smiled to himself and kept on sucking and pumping, completely happy to suck on a huge cock attached to a hot man, and accidentally set himself off first. _

_Demyx noticed, but he only chuckled and kissed the back of Axel's neck. "I'm getting close," he breathed into Axel's ear. "If you...wanna let go -" Axel shook his head before he even finished the sentence and kept sucking, until Demyx's hips jerked and Axel tasted cum in his mouth. "All sausage tastes better with sauce," he said after swallowing, giving Demyx's manhood one last lick."Yeah, I could tell you were enjoying it," Demyx chuckled, pulling Axel up for a steamy kiss. "Little quick off the mark there, weren't you?"_

_"Couldn't help it," Axel panted, pressing his bare chest against Demyx's. "I just started thinking about how sexy you were and how big your dick was and how lucky I was to be sucking on it and - oops, there I went."_

* * *

Axel jolted awake.

_Goddamn, another one?_ he thought, looking at the clock. It was _still _early, even by his standards. And he wasn't sure he could take much more of these dreams-

_-_Scratch that. Axel _knew _he couldn't after noticing that he was fully upright instead of at half-mast now like he had been the first time he woke up this morning._…what's one quick jerk off going to matter? _Axel thought. _Demyx isn't even up and he'll never have to know about this…sometimes, I thank whatever god that watches over us Nobodies that Demyx is deaf._

With that thought, Axel pulled his pajama pants and boxers down. He sighed a bit in relief at just the thought of what was about to happen as the red head took a firm hold of himself, letting his imagination take over as he started out with slow, almost painful strokes…

_Demyx's eyes were lit up all over again, and he promptly smeared some lube on the fingers of one hand and started feeling his way down to Axel's ass with the other. Axel couldn't help but whimper slightly as Demyx's first questing finger found its way inside. "Mmm, it's hot in there," Demyx breathed into his ear. "Hot and tight - this is gonna be fun."_

_"You'll find out when you get in there," Axel purred, unconsciously pushing back against Demyx's fingers and forcing them deeper inside. His conscious mind was occupied with rubbing their dicks together, enjoying the feel of them both hardening in his hands. "You liar...you said it would take a while for you to get it back up after two rounds."_

_Well, you seem hell-bent on seeing how many rounds I can last in a day," Demyx retorted, pressing one finger against Axel's prostate; Axel bit down on his shoulder to keep himself from crying aloud. "More than four would be my new record, but...it is still morning..."_

_"Damn, we could do this all day if no one comes looking for us," Axel hissed, and was quickly silenced by another steamy kiss. "Mmm...anyway, how's that sound?"_

_Demyx didn't answer that, except to get to work on giving Axel another hickey. "But...you act like it's a good thing...ohh..." Axel couldn't help but let out a soft moan, as Demyx's free hand roved its way to his chest, pausing to toy with his nipples before sliding further down. "You're...gonna make me impatient..."_

_Demyx only chuckled in exchange, as his hands and mouth seemed to slide all over Axel's skin for a moment, inside and out. Then, slowly, he pulled his fingers out of Axel's entry and reached for the lube again, pressing his lips to Axel's one last time before whispering the magic words: "Bend over." _

_Axel couldn't bend over fast enough. Demyx quickly disappeared from his sight, but Axel could soon feel him, probing his entry with his fingers again and stretching him out, then finally sliding himself in. It hurt, as Axel had expected - Demyx was big, and big dicks hurt more, he knew from experience - but it was a good kind of pain, even as Demyx started thrusting. "You don't - nnh - have to be so - gentle about it," he grunted, pumping himself in time with Demyx's thrusts. "I - I can take - harder than this -"_

_"Sorry," Demyx said, sounding genuinely apologetic. "I just...you know...didn't wanna hurt you..." But he started thrusting harder and faster, seemingly further encouraged by Axel's pleasure. Axel, for his own part, was happy to let Demyx know exactly how much he was enjoying himself. Which did slightly backfire. "Man, you're noisy," Demyx eventually laughed. "I'm glad you're having fun, but - damn, do you want us to get caught?"_

_"I just...wanted to let you know...how much - mmm! - fun I was having," Axel panted, pumping himself even harder as Demyx started to thrust faster. It had actually been some time since he'd let another guy top, and the feeling of having a huge penis thrusting inside him, pressing against his prostate with every thrust - and belonging to someone who was both careful and caring; someone that big could really hurt a person if they weren't, but Demyx would never - "Come inside me...Dem..." he added, feeling himself getting close and figuring Demyx couldn't be too far behind. _

_Demyx's fingers were digging into Axel's hips, and Axel could feel his breath on his back, and oh dear God this felt so damn good...sure, he had no idea what Demyx was saying now, but it sure as hell sounded sexy...and Demyx cried out his name-_

The red head could hear the words from the other side of the door but they didn't register as he came hard, releasing several weeks of tension… then he heard the bathroom door open slowly, quickly slamming back shut.

_Shit shit shit!_ Axel's thoughts raced when he finally came out of his daze and realized that Demyx had heard what had happened. _I can only hope that I wasn't too loud or moaning his name or something. _

But the red head knew he was going to have to talk to Demyx sooner or later.

A shower was needed first…and maybe a trip to do some laundry.

* * *

I swear to God that I'm not dead. Enjoy this smut-filled chapter on behalf of my lateness of updating


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